Salaries on the way up

Salaries may be on the move again in the financial services arena, with new research released by recruitment specialists Hays suggesting that 48 per cent of financial services employers expect to increase salaries by between 3 and six per cent.

The Hays Salary Guide suggests that salary intentions in the industry are slightly above average and that while 48 per cent of employers had indicated rises in the order of 3 to 6 per cent, a further 8 per cent of respondents expect to increase salaries above this level.

Hays notes that this is up on the same period last year, when 21 per cent of financial services employers expected to increase salaries between 3 and 6 per cent.

The Hays data also suggests that hiring intentions were up, with 45 per cent of employers expecting to increase headcount and 22 per cent intending to increase their use of temporary or contract staff.

Commenting on the company's research, Hays Banking senior regional director Jane McNeill said it indicated that, for the most part, salaries had remained constant over the past year.

However, she said that while employers had managed to control salaries as candidates had focused on job security, this was changing, with candidates now in a much stronger position.

McNeill predicted that salaries would start to creep up over the next 12 months as the war for talent returned.