Malaysia: Median salary increment expected to hit 5% in 2023

• Nov 11, 2022

PETALING JAYA: Employees in Malaysia can look forward to a median 5% increase in their salaries next year, up from 4.8% this year, according to Mercer’s annual Total Remuneration Survey 2022.

The asset management firm said the salary increment would be a return to the pre-pandemic level, as seen in 2019.

“This reflects growing optimism among employers about their business and overall market outlook,” it said in a statement.

Mercer said Malaysia’s median salary increment is also above the Asia-Pacific average of 4.4%.

“Across Asia, the overall median salary increases reflect a divergence in pay progression between emerging and developed economies, with estimates as high as 7.1% in Vietnam to 2.2% in Japan, the lowest in the region,” it added.

Mercer said the retail and consumer goods industries are expected to see the biggest upturn in salary increments of 5% in 2023, up from 4.5% and 4.6%, respectively, in 2022.

Shared services and outsourcing and high-tech industries would maintain their 5% increase from this year, signalling the relative stability of both industries amidst inflationary pressures and supply chain issues, it said.

Employees can also expect higher bonus payouts this year, based on the forecast. — Bernama