SALARIES ACROSS Australia rose by a median of 4.1 per cent for the first quarter of the year, up from 3.9 per cent a year ago, according to a survey of 5,500 employees across 628 organisations
SALARIES ACROSS Australia rose by a median of 4.1 per cent for the first quarter of the year, up from 3.9 per cent a year ago, according to a survey of 5,500 employees across 628 organisations.
Launched by Chandler Macleod Group and conducted in association with the National Remuneration Centre, the survey examined 140 roles across executive, finance and accounting, sales and marketing, HR, office support, customer service, trades and engineering and operations.
A strong economy, low interest rates and high housing costs had all contributed to the increase in salaries, according to Chandler Macleod Group managing director, Stephen Cartwright.
The unemployment rate, currently at 6.2 per cent, was continuing to decrease and there would soon be an upward pressure on salaries, due to labour shortages.
“While there are already skill shortages in some areas, the broader impact of a lower unemployment rate is only likely to emerge as a more significant factor as the rate falls towards 5 per cent,” he said.
The survey also revealed that, despite organisations proactively implementing HR strategies to retain key staff, there was still a long way to go.
“Employee retention has traditionally been seen as a ‘soft’ area and not always taken seriously by top executives,” said Cartwright.
Forty-nine per cent of respondents said there was no dedicated HR budget for staff retention and a further 35 per cent dedicated only 1–10 per cent of their overall HR budget to this area.
“Organisations need to understand how to protect their human capital investment and enable it to grow. Once they have identified the top performers, they need to hold onto them and help them shine. Only when organisations achieve this can they genuinely say their people are their greatest asset,” said Cartwright.
