MANILA, Philippines — With the year 2023 serving as a "great recovery period" for companies, an employment platform said that this year, they should improve their compensation and benefits to attract better talents.
A five-page report by online job search platform Jobstreet by SEEK released Friday said that employers must calibrate compensations to attract individuals with the best available skills in 2024 as salary increments last year were conducted by companies to retain their employees.
“The year 2023 became a great recovery period for companies. This can be seen in the report's data on salary increments offered by hirers that reached an average of 10.24%, significantly higher than the 7.3% average in 2022,” the firm’s report read.
The report surveyed 680 hiring professionals from different companies.
According to the report, more companies in 2023 gave performance bonuses along with an average increase of 2.3 months of salary. This amount is higher than the 1.3 months in 2022.
The report also mentioned that staff promotions by firms increased by 70% coming from 60% in 2022.
“Overall, these figures signify the companies’ commitment to creating a positive and progressive work environment to keep their existing talents,” the report read.
The report indicated that 15% of surveyed companies intend to introduce birthday leave, 14% plan to offer menstrual leave, and 13% plan to provide family care leave to better accommodate employees' needs.
“This shows how diversity and inclusivity are truly emphasized in the workplace,” the report read.
Regarding financial benefits, the most prominent ones, according to the report, include medical insurance, health check-ups, and dental coverage, each seeing an 8% increase.
Employee satisfaction
The report said that the surveyed firms are enhancing employee satisfaction by other perks and benefits.
Among these, according to Jobstreet by SEEKs report, are providing accommodation rental reimbursements, flexible working hours and free snacks.
This aligns with the trend of prioritizing employee mental health, with many considering wellness counseling/talks, employee assistance programs, mental health days off, medical leave and subscriptions to mental health apps, according to the report.
Additionally, the surveyed firms are considering extending medical insurance to cover family members, as well as providing internet and transportation allowances as part of employee benefits.
Workforce reduction still rampant
Despite the increase in the number of benefits given by the surveyed firms and their improved situations in 2023, the report said that layoffs of employees are still prevalent.
The workforce reduction has been attributed to the “restructuring, downscaling and higher turnovers” of the firms’ departments, according to the report.
Medium-sized businesses, according to Jobstreet by SEEK’s report, were seen to have reduced their number of permanent part-time and contractual/temporary full-time employees.
“This shows the dynamic nature of workforce adjustments with larger businesses and medium-sized companies taking the lead in employee reductions in 2023,” the report read.
In December 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported a decline in the number of unemployed individuals to 1.6 million.
This is lower than the 2.22 million unemployed Filipinos in the same period in 2022.
According to the PSA, the following sectors had the highest annual decrease in employed persons during the period:
- Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (-660,000)
- Administrative and support service activities (-250,000)
- Fishing and aquaculture (-159,000)
- Financial and insurance activities (-132,000)
- Arts and entertainment (-16,000)
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Workplace setup
Meanwhile, Jobstreet by SEEK's report also showed that 57% of the surveyed companies are fully returning to the office while 21% are moving towards a hybrid model with remote work options based on job roles.
According to the report, this trend is expected to continue this year with most companies likely to maintain a similar approach.
In a separate report last January, tech firm Cisco said that return-to-office policies does not enable them to show their full potential at work.
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“While the beginning of 2024 seems just to be following the trends in 2023, the second half is full of uncertainties. Hirers are therefore expected to get creative in terms of developing a strategic recruitment approach to attract and retain more talents,” the report read.