Singapore firms to keep 2026 salary growth steady despite high staff turnover: Survey
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Companies are budgeting a 4.3 per cent salary hike in 2026, according to a survey by professional services firm Aon.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
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- Singapore firms plan 4.3% salary increase in 2026, the same as 2025, says Aon survey.
- Life sciences leads with 4.6% projected pay bump, while energy sector lags at 3.5%.
- Voluntary exits accounted for most attritions in Singapore at 12.7 per cent, while involuntary exits stood at 6.6 per cent.
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SINGAPORE – Singapore companies are keeping a tight rein on salary hikes in 2026, even as their turnover levels remain among the highest in South-east Asia, according to a new survey.
Professional services firm Aon found that companies here are budgeting a 4.3 per cent salary increase in 2026 – the same as the actual growth in 2025.
Conducted from July to September, Aon’s latest Salary Increase and Turnover Survey covered over 700 companies and their regional offices across more than 15 industries in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Across sectors, life sciences and medical devices firms in Singapore are expected to offer the largest pay bump at 4.6 per cent.
Mr Rahul Chawla, Aon’s partner and head of talent solutions in South-east Asia, said life sciences as a sector tends to be a “good paymaster”. These companies also appeal to talent who are driven by purpose, like those who want to contribute to improving lives.
On the other end of the spectrum, the energy sector is budgeting the smallest salary increase at 3.5 per cent, reflecting more cautious sentiment.
Regionally, companies in Vietnam are budgeting the highest salary hike at 7.1 per cent in 2026, followed by Indonesia at 5.9 per cent and the Philippines at 5.2 per cent.
Mr Chawla noted that inflation is a big driver for salary hikes. In developing economies, inflation rates are typically higher, translating to a larger pay bump.
High turnover
According to the Aon survey, turnover levels in Singapore firms during the period from June 1, 2024, to June 1, 2025, remained among the highest in the region at 19.3 per cent, just behind the Philippines (20 per cent).
Voluntary exits accounted for most attritions in Singapore at 12.7 per cent, while involuntary exits stood at 6.6 per cent.
Compared with its regional peers, Singapore’s involuntary turnover rate was the highest, while Vietnam recorded the lowest rate at 2.1 per cent.
Across industries in Singapore, the manufacturing sector saw the highest overall turnover (26 per cent) and voluntary turnover (20.9 per cent) rates.
Mr Chawla said this could be due to older workers exiting the industry voluntarily. The other possibility is that the sector is not appealing to workers.
Meanwhile, the retail and hospitality sector recorded the highest involuntary turnover rate at 7.3 per cent, followed by the technology sector at 6.8 per cent.
Regionally, most companies in all six markets are projecting a flat headcount in the second half of 2025.
Aon’s head of data solutions in South-east Asia Evon Lock said that as companies leverage the use of technology and artificial intelligence, they tend to prefer optimising instead of growing their workforce aggressively.
Sales and information technology are among the hottest jobs in all six markets.
Ms Rachel Jaya Prakash, Aon’s associate partner and head of talent solutions in Malaysia, said: “The skill sets of sales people are evolving because products are getting more complex, and services are getting more sophisticated. So there’s a niche talent pool that’s able to deliver that in the market.”
She added that the need for data protection also boosts the demand for technology professionals, especially those specialising in cyber security.
