13 Feb 2012

Workers increasingly expect pay increases - survey

7:38 am on 13 February 2012

A buoyant job market is putting pressure on firms to give workers a pay rise, according to the recruitment firm Hudson.

The company surveyed more than 10,000 employers and employees across New Zealand and Australia and found salary expectations are a growing source of tension between businesses and employees.

Mike Dickson, general manager of Hudson in Wellington, says 70% of employees quizzed are considering moving jobs this year in a bid to improve their salary, while two thirds of employers were worried about losing their high-performing staff to the competition.

Mr Dickson says many people have not had a salary increase for a number of years and are now reasonably confident that they can find a new job which will increase their salary.

Despite the pressure, Mr Dickson says firms should not get sucked into paying top dollar for skills or experience.

He says the highest indicator of performance in a role is cultural and motivational fit which very few employers are assessing.

Mr Dickson says salary is one way to attract a person to a job - but it is only worth paying if the firm can ensure the person will perform in that role.