A whopping 87% expressed their intent to bolster salaries in subsequent reviews
A total of 69% of legal employers intends to grant salary increases of >3%, according to the latest Hays Salary Guide.
This reflects an uptick from last year, where 65% of legal employers surveyed then said they were looking to increase pay by at least 3%. Additionally, this is accompanied by the finding that 87% of legal employers have expressed an intent to bolster salaries in subsequent reviews.
The skills shortage has continued to play a significant role in driving salary increases, with 73% citing it as a factor. A total of 72% of organisations reported facing skills shortages – 57% were facing moderate/minor shortages, while 15% reported facing extreme skills shortage.
Thus, 65% of organisations are anticipating that such a shortage will affect effective business operations in the next 12 months.
“There’s a trend of employees expecting higher salary increases over the past three reports with 59% indicating they believed they would benefit financially from changing jobs in the next 12 months. In 2019, 67% of employees expected a pay rise of less than 3%. In just five years, the pendulum has swung to 65% of employees expecting a pay increase of more than 3%”, Hays APAC CEO Matthew Dickason said.
He indicated that individual performance is still the primary aspect an employer considers in awarding pay rises (92%).
“Other factors employers will consider include responsibilities (82%), expertise (56%), external typical salaries for the role (59%) and the organisation’s performance (54%)”, Dickason said.
Nonetheless, he noted that the percentage of legal professionals seeking a salary increase this year (68%) has dropped compared to the previous year (71%).
The 45th edition of the Hays Salary Guide lists the findings from a survey of over 15,000 employers and professionals in more than 1,270 roles throughout 26 industries.
