Salary increases between 4.7% to 6% for workers in Thailand

Good news for employees in Thailand - 2016's salary increases were found to range between 4.7% to 6% in 2016 across industries surveyed in Aon Hewitt's Total Compensation Measurement (TCM) Study and Benefit Survey 2016.

Polling 174 participating organisations across all key industries in Thailand, the survey found that the highest increases came from the retail and life sciences industry which offered a 6% salary increase in 2016. On the other hand, the travel industry saw the lowest salary increase, at 4.7%.

The survey went on to highlight that this year, performance continued to drive pay-related decisions for 95.1% of employers in Thailand — with the average 2016 bonus payout rate standing at 22% of the annual base salary in 2016, compared to 17.62% in 2015.

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Alarmingly, it pointed out that turnover rate is the highest for junior management/supervisor levels across industries, at 14% for voluntary turnover and 5.3% for involuntary turnover.

"This reflects the mounting pressure on these employees to sustain their performance levels, even as they make the significant leap from individual contributors to their first managerial roles," the survey pointed out.

In order to retain these employees, 72.2% of employers offered individual performance awards while 38.9% offered special recognition as short-term incentives.

Additionally, the survey found that employers invested an average of 11% of annual base salaries on employee benefits, with medical outpatient costs making up a significant portion. At the same time, 43% of organisations were found to provide financial wellness advisory as a benefit to employees at all levels.

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Panuwat Benrohman, partner APAC MEA, managing director, Aon Hewitt, Thailand, said: “The high turnover rate among junior managers should warn employers in Thailand to think about their compensation policies in the context of their overall talent retention strategy. While the pay for performance model has its merits, employers must also embrace their responsibility to equip junior managers as they transition from individual contributor roles.

"With ‘better external opportunities’ and ‘limited growth opportunity’ among the top three reasons for attrition, a focus on learning and development will help employers in Thailand build a strong leadership pipeline from within while still compensating high performers attractively.”

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