(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Salaries forecast to rise 7.1% in 2015; job market seen picking up.
Dubai — Private sector salaries in the UAE are expected to rise by 7.1 per cent in 2015 at a pace higher than the average hike predicted for the GCC region according to a report on employment trends on Monday.
Across the GCC private sector salaries are forecast to rise by 6.9 per cent this year as the region’s resilient private sector unfazed by the impact of oil price plunge gears up for more job creation says the latest edition of the research report “Employment and salary trends in the Gulf”.
The report released by GulfTalent an online recruitment portal said Qatar is expected to see the highest average pay increase at 8.3 per cent driven by rising cost of living and the growing need to attract talent for completion of projects. Employers in Oman under pressure from an increasingly unionized workforce are forecast to give the second highest average pay rise at 7.2 per cent it said.
“Saudi Arabia and the UAE are next with expected average pay rises of 7.1 per cent followed by Bahrain at seven per cent. Kuwait is expected to see the lowest average pay rise at five per cent” the report said.
Highest-paid sectors
The construction industry is forecast to offer the highest average salary increase at 10 per cent while oil and gas sector is expected to provide the lowest hike at 5.4 per cent.
Across the region healthcare remained as the fastest growing sector with 79 per cent of employers in the sector poised to increase headcount in 2015. In 2014 the sector saw 82 per cent of companies boosting their staff strength.
“Among GCC countries Qatar is expected to enjoy the highest rate of job creation in 2015. With the uncertainty over the World Cup finally removed and major infrastructure projects getting the go-ahead 66 per cent of employers in Qatar reported plans to increase headcount” the report said.
“Key drivers of this growth were found to be massive government investment the region’s fast-growing population and regulatory changes in most GCC countries requiring companies to provide health insurance for employees.”
A recent survey done by Bayt.com also endorses the view that the UAE job market will be picking up in the coming months.
The Bayt.com Middle East Job Index survey revealed that 55 per cent of employers in the UAE are hiring within three months; 68 per cent are hiring within a year’s time. Up to 69 per cent of employers hiring within the next three months are looking to fill up to 10 positions in their companies.
GulfTalent’s report based on an online survey of 600 employers and 22000 professionals as well as 60 interviews with executives and HR professionals also found that creating jobs for nationals remains a hot issue across the Gulf.
“Employers in Saudi Arabia and Oman under pressure from their governments to meet tough nationalisation targets cited attraction and retention of skilled nationals as their biggest human resource challenge” the report said.
The survey conducted during the period December 2014 to April 2015 finds that conflicts across the Middle East have led to an increased supply of talent from the affected countries seeking opportunities in the Gulf.
“However employers were often frustrated in their attempts to absorb this talent pool due to restrictions put in place by most GCC governments on granting employment visas to nationals of the affected countries notably Syria and Egypt” it said.
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