Australia – Three people found guilty in Plutus Payroll trial (Sydney Morning Herald)

The son of a former high-ranking Tax Office official in Australia is among three people found guilty of taking part in an AUD 105 million (USD 69.4 million) tax fraud scheme involving payroll provider Plutus Payroll, reports The Sydney Morning Herald. Adam Michael Cranston, 36, Lauren Anne Cranston,...

Singapore – Re-employment support on the cards to help retrenched workers tide over tough times (The Straits Times)

To ensure laid off workers in Singapore do not rush into the first job they find, regardless of its suitability and prospects, a re-employment support scheme is needed, reports The Straits Times, citing panellists at a wide-ranging roundtable discussion this week. Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong,...

South Korea – Majority of businesses raised salaries at an average of 6.4%

To keep up with minimum wage and inflation, the majority of Korean companies gave their employees a bump in their pay, according to the Saramin HR Research Institute.

Saramin surveyed 332 companies on the wage increase status for 2023, of which 67.5% said they had already decided on wages this year. Among...

Australia – Labour demand eases in December, more people working multiple jobs

The number of vacant jobs in Australia grew by a small margin of 0.1% year-on-year from 2.7% in December 2021 to 2.8% in December 2022, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

On a quarterly basis, the proportion of vacant jobs, however, fell by 0.4%.

“A fall in the proportion of...

Japan – 2% of female workers are paid more than men (Mainichi Shimbun)

Only 2% of female workers in Japan are paid more than men among full-time employees, according to a report from the Mainichi Shimbun, which analysed data from the labor ministry.

The “Database of companies promoting women’s active engagement” examined the difference in wages between men and women...

Singapore – Tech salaries mostly jumped in 2022 (CNBC)

Tech salaries in Singapore mostly jumped in 2022 despite a string of tech layoffs and a slowdown in hiring, reports CNBC, citing a report by tech salaries aggregator Nodeflair and venture capital firm, Iterative. The roles with the highest wage increases year-on-year are blockchain engineers (+15.62%),...

New Zealand – Job ads down 13% in February, ICT job ads fall 34%

Job ads across New Zealand fell by 13% in February 2023 compared to February 2022, according to the latest research by Seek New Zealand.

By industry, job ads fell the most in the ICT sector at -34%. This was followed by Healthcare and Medical (-24%). On the other hand, the Hospitality industry reported...

Malaysia – Online job vacancies up 7.3% in Q4

The number of job vacancies advertised online posted a year-on-year increase of 7.3% during the fourth quarter of 2022 in Malaysia, according to the latest statistics from the Department of Statistics Malaysia.

On a quarterly basis, the number of job vacancies advertised online increased by 7.5% resulting...

Japan – Over half of businesses consider wage hikes for new grads

With the spring hiring season in Japan starting, close to 60% are considering salary raises for employees, according to research from employment firm Mynavi Corp.

Mynavi’s 2024 New Graduate Hiring Plan Survey took responses from 2,036 companies to understand the attitudes toward new graduate recruitment...

Japan – Workers eye massive pay hike in closely watched union talks (Reuters)

Japan's big companies are expected to deliver the largest pay rise in 26 years in next week's ‘shunto’ (spring wage campaign) negotiations, reports Reuters. However, the expected average salary hike of around 3% will likely include just a 1% increase in base pay, casting doubt on whether Japan can...