BusinessLive reports that for those holding down a job in SA’s embattled labour market, 2022 may bring good news as local employers are pencilling in above-inflation wage increases for staff.
Meantime, the number of companies planning to freeze salaries is set to decline. Research by advisory firm Willis Towers Watson shows that local employers intend to give staff an average annual pay rise of 5.5% in 2022, up from 2021’s 4.7%. The proportion of firms expecting to freeze pay is set to fall to 5% in 2022, from 12% this year. The survey covered 130 countries worldwide, including 320 SA-based firms. “Businesses are navigating a tentative recovery from the pandemic, and it is encouraging that many are planning to offer more generous pay rises,” Melanie Trollip of Willis Towers Watson SA said. In the midst of the jobs fallout, the survey found that competition for skilled workers remained intense — with firms giving top performers a pay rise that was two-and-a-half times greater than staff on average performance ratings in 2021. “Even though Covid-19 wreaked havoc on our economy, firms still had to compete to attract and retain the top performers, and higher pay rises were part of that strategy. Now that we may be entering a recovery phase, these high performers are especially important for driving business growth,” Trollip commented. On a sectoral basis, the medical technology, pharmaceutical, and consumer product sectors are planning increases of 7.1%, 6.1% and 6%, respectively. Employees in business consulting, energy and natural resources, and construction, property and engineering will not see such generous hikes, with average increases of 3.7%, 4.1% and 4.2% planned.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lynley Donnelly at BusinessLive
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