Salary outlook for 2022

Salary paid

SALARIES will remain the biggest factor for employees looking to switch jobs.

They also prefer stable and future-proof companies, whose values are aligned to their own and those that adhere to environment, social and governance or ESG practices.

With the rising cost of living and after nearly two years of working from home, many are eager for a lifestyle and job change.

Randstad Malaysia predicts that with the scarcity of talents, Malaysia will remain a candidate-driven market. It said more talents will be changing jobs or moving to other companies in 2022.

Hiring the right talents while navigating the new normal will remain a challenge.

More so, with digitalisation becoming a mainstay, according to Randstad.

In its 2022 Market Outlook and Salary Snapshot Malaysia report, it predicts four must-watch areas of technological growth next year. They are e-commerce, financial technology, cloud and cybersecurity.

The demand for data engineers/scientists, on top of software developers for medium to large companies leveraging on big data, will be high. So will the demand for soft skills rise in the new normal.

The basic monthly salary for a data engineer with three to eight years experience is between RM7,000 and RM14,000. This does not include other benefits such as allowances, medical plans and bonuses.

A security engineer with one to five years experience can earn between RM4,000 and RM12,000. A project manager with five to 10 years experience can expect between RM10,000 and RM20,000.

For a quality manager (10 to 15 years experience) in the manufacturing sector, the salary range is between RM8,000 and RM15,000. The fast moving consumer goods sector has its own salary scale.

A brand manager with five to eight years experience can earn between RM7,000 and RM12,000; regional sales manager (eight to 10 years experience) between RM13,000 and RM17,000.

Flexible or remote work options will become more important.

Firms that are unwilling to change and sticking to pre-pandemic ways will see much higher turnover rates, it says.