Asian bosses earn 14 times more than you

Middle managers in Asia earn 14 more than operational employees, resulting in the biggest pay gap in the world. This puts Asia significantly ahead of its peers when it comes to pay disparity.

In the Middle East, middle managers such as department heads earn 11.9 times more than operational managers such as clerical workers, while middle managers in Central and South America earn 10.2 times more.

The figures are much lower in North America (3.5 times) and Europe (2.9 times), Wall Street Journal reported.

A separate report by the Asian Development Bank last year found factors such as technological advances, globalisation and market-oriented reforms drive the biggest pay wedge between highly and lowly skilled workers.

The Hay Group report also found in Asia, the pay gap is even more pronounced within cities. In Karachi, Pakistan, middle managers earn 22.5 times more than workers.

Two of China’s biggest cities, Shanghai (18.5) and Beijing (18), along with Delhi (18.3), Mumbai (16.6) and Bangkok (16.6) rounded up the top five biggest pay gaps among Asian cities.

The report added middle managers and executives in Asia have better purchasing power than those in the West, though senior managers in Doha, Qatar have the highest purchasing power in the world – 366% compared to senior managers in New York City.