Average salary hikes seen hitting 5.5% in 2023

Employees in the Philippines can hope for a 5.5-percent increase in their median salaries next year, a trend which marks a return to prepandemic times, following a year of rising inflation and substantial currency depreciation.

This is according to the Total Remuneration Survey conducted by financial services consulting firm Mercer which polled 447 organizations across 11 industries in the country between April and June of this year.

“Salary increases are gradually increasing now that business activities in the Philippines are picking up postpandemic. But inflation hit a high this year and there was little to no real salary increase for employees,” said Floriza Molon, Mercer’s career business leader for the Philippines.

“The situation will improve for 2023, as the market outlook is forecast to improve with lower inflation rates. Employees will be able to benefit from some real salary increase, which will be welcome news for many,” she added.

Data from the firm shows that the last time Philippine employees received a median 5.5 percent salary increase was in 2019.

Mercer said this return to the prepandemic level reflects continued growth among the businesses surveyed amid a more positive outlook as inflation rate is forecast to decrease to 4.3 percent from this year’s high of 5.3 percent.

Mercer also showed that the Philippines’ expected median salary increment is above the Asia-Pacific average of 4.8 percent, with trends across the region showing major differences between emerging and developed economies. Some estimates run as high as 9.1 percent for India to 2.2 percent for Japan, the lowest in the region.