SINGAPORE - Salary consistently ranks as the No. 1 most important attractiveness factor for jobseekers in Singapore when selecting a new organisation, a new study has found.

Between 63 per cent and 71 per cent of respondents, which included millennials, the largest generation in the workforce, ranked salary as top consideration for a consistent period between 2012 and 2016, Randstad Employer Brand Research study found.

Work-life balance ranks second with 32 per cent to 57 per cent among the respondents, while job security considerations dropped from 61 per cent to 42 per cent among the age group. Considering the average tenure of millennials in a job was typically around two years, the financial health of a company was least of their priorities, dropping from 55 per cent to 39 per cent in the last four years, Randstad said in a release on Friday (March 31).

According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, millennials are now the largest generation in the workforce, and this generation of employees tend to have their own perspective of what office life should look like, the study observed.

In Hong Kong, jobseekers regard salary as one of the most important attributes too, but not always. Long-term job security outranked salary considerations for employees in 2013, but since the attractiveness factor for job security has plummeted from 65 per cent to 43 per cent in 2016, giving salary and benefits the upper hand.

Hong Kongers regard work atmosphere as the second most important attribute with a score of 50 per cent in 2016, tying in second place with work-life balance.

Malaysia too put salary and benefits on top of their list with a score of 69 per cent, following the financial health of an organisations. Malaysian employees scored financial health at 50 per cent, beating out pleasant working atmosphere at 41 per cent, followed by long-term job security at 44 per cent.