According to a recent Willis Towers Watson survey, salaries in India are projected to rise by 10% in 2020, marginally higher than the actual increase (9.9%) in 2019. Sector-wise, the energy sector, financial services, and consumer products sector could see the highest salary growth.
While salary increases in India are stabilizing around the 10% mark, they remain the highest in the Asia Pacific region. Indonesia is projected at 8%, China at 6.5%, Philippines at 6%, Hong Kong and Singapore both at 4%, the report says.
Rajul Mathur, Consulting Leader – Talent & Rewards, Willis Towers Watson India said, “Though salary increases in India still continue to be among the highest in the region, companies are taking a cautious approach and do not intend to make any significant changes from previous years. Companies are beginning to make selective skill-based compensation adjustments to cater to requirements around automation and digitisation..”
Among the surveyed companies, 28% have projected a positive business revenue outlook for the next 12 months, down from 37% in 2018. As many as 61% of them expect no big change as compared to 57% last year, and 11% have a downward revenue projection compared to 5% in 2018, according to a Willis Towers Watson release that encapsulated the findings of the report.
While most sectors like the general industry, chemical, high tech, and pharmaceuticals can expect salary increases around the average mark of 10%, energy, financial services, and consumer product sectors stand out for the highest year-on-year growth.
22% companies that are likely to increase headcount in 2020, compared with 29% last year. Those planning to maintain current headcount rose to 70% from 63%, while those planning to slash staff strength came down to 7% from 8% last year.
The energy sector is expected to see a jump from 8.5% in 2019 to 9.3% in 2020, the financial services sector is projected at 9.7% in 2020 from 9% last year and the consumer products sector is expected to see an increase from 9.5% in 2019 to 9.9% in 2020.
