AS THE momentum of hiring activities remained stable in 2023, the employment market in the Philippines is set to remain positive for the beginning of 2024, with 61 percent of the surveyed companies looking for new talents and job seekers proactively looking for jobs.
But despite this positive backdrop, a study conducted by Jobstreet by SEEK disclosed that employers must fine-tune their compensation packages to attract the best available talents.
Forty-one percent of the surveyed firms expressed insecurity for the second half of this year with 16 percent of them mentioning the job market’s unpredictability which could be influenced by factors such as economic conditions and global events.
“2024 is anticipated to be the year when hirers will need to recalibrate their compensation offerings to be able to attract the best talents available — an opportunity for employers to expand the benefits and consider other essential factors that candidates are starting to look for,” the report said.
Jobstreet by SEEK 2024 Hiring, Compensation and Benefits Report surveyed over 680 hiring professionals from Philippine companies of varying industries, roles and sizes. The survey was conducted in September 2023.
“The current age of employment is here and it is progressing exponentially day by day, and as we see it, 2024 is a very promising year for the job market. We hope this new report will be able to guide our hirers and candidates in navigating the ever-dynamic world of work,” said Dannah Majarocon, managing director of Jobstreet Philippines, in a statement.
Recovery period of companies
The year 2023 became a great recovery period for companies, according to the online job portal.
This can be seen in the report’s data on salary increments offered by hirers that reached an average of 10.24 percent, significantly higher than the 7.3 percent average in 2022.
The report showed that most companies implemented salary benchmarking to retain current employees as well as evaluation of company pay guidelines and policies. More companies also gave out performance bonuses in 2023 with the average increasing 2.3 months of salary, compared to just 1.3 months in 2022, the report revealed.
Staff promotions also notably increased from 60 percent to 70 percent in 2023. Overall, these figures signify the companies’ commitment to creating a positive and progressive work environment to keep their existing talents.
Further into the report, the benefits provided by most of the companies were seen to cater to the current needs of their employees.
More of them offered birthday leaves in 2023 with 15 percent planning to do so in the future. Meanwhile, 14 percent and 13 percent of companies plan to offer menstrual leave and family care leave in the future, to reflect diversity and inclusivity are truly emphasized in the workplace.
Financial benefits, other perks
As for financial benefits, the top ones are medical insurance, health checks and dental coverage with an increase of eight percent each. Some companies are also planning to introduce or are already introducing fund/retirement plans and mental health treatment coverage/insurance.
Companies were also seen to be prioritizing career development through apprenticeship/mentoring programs and introducing training/self-learning programs.
Employee satisfaction is also being won by companies through offering accommodation rental reimbursements, flexible working hours and free snacks, the results of the survey showed.
These go hand-in-hand with the trend of companies working on prioritizing employee mental health with a number of them eyeing to offer wellness counseling/talks, employee assistance programs and mental health day off or medical leave and mental health app subscriptions.
Extended medical insurance for family members, internet and transportation allowances are also being considered to be part of hirers’ employee benefits.
Moreover, in 2023, almost all of the companies surveyed said they hired at least one employee within the year (99 percent), surpassing the data gathered in 2022 (89 percent). The largest portion of this growth came from permanent full-time employees, reflecting a strong commitment to building a stable and long-term workforce.
Workforce reduction
Workforce reduction, however, was still a bit rampant with 24 percent scaling down, mirroring the figures from 2022. Out of the statistics, 15 percent are permanent full-time employees. This shift is attributed to different departments undergoing restructuring, downscaling and higher turnovers.
Medium-sized businesses, in particular, were seen to have significantly reduced their number of permanent part-time and contractual/temporary full-time employees.
When it comes to work arrangement, the report revealed that more companies started fully going back to the office (57 percent), but more are adopting a hybrid model with some remote work depending on the job function (21 percent).
For 2024, most companies are expected to adopt a very similar model and are seen to be more than likely here to stay. / KOC