Employees across Asia Pacific reported lower satisfaction with their jobs in 2022, according to a report from Hays. The data from the report showed 81% of employees are either actively looking for a new job or indicated being open to opportunities.

Hays’ research surveyed 9,598 skilled professionals across China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore to understand their salary expectations and career plans.

The biggest reasons why people are thinking of leaving their jobs are due to compensation and career development.

Hays noted that these were also among the top reasons cited for those who have no plans to leave their current job. Other factors that correlated highly with intention to remain with their current employers included satisfaction with work-life balance, availability of flexible work options, and alignment of company and personal values.

At the same time, organisations are planning to hire more. With 69% of respondents predicting an increase in business activity levels in 2022, more than half also expect staff levels to rise in the next twelve months. This is in line with the reported reduction of hiring freezes, which is especially significant in Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Meanwhile, 74% of employees said they did not expect or were unsure about receiving a promotion in 2022.

The percentage of respondents who reported getting a pay cut stayed level over 2020 and 2021, as did those who reported receiving their bonus. Moreover, employers also reported that there were more raises given in 2021 compared to the year before.

Yet, employee data indicates some dissatisfaction with compensation. Of the 37% of employees who asked for a raise in 2021, slightly over two-thirds were successful. This is perhaps the reason behind the growing appetite for higher salaries, with 80% of respondents expecting a salary increase, and nearly one in every four people anticipating an increase greater than 10%.

While Hays found that employers seem willing to accommodate some increment in salaries, especially since the biggest reason for skills shortages was the higher compensation offered elsewhere, increments will largely remain within the 3-6% range. Hays added that more employers have indicated plans to give staff bonuses in 2022.

Hays’ report also showed that when considering a new role, candidates preferred flexible working options including home or mobile working (65%), flexi-time (change work hours outside of core business periods) (59%) and compressed hours (e.g., fitting a five-day week into four days) (28%).