Singaporeans grumble about unfair pay

7 in 10 believe they are underpaid compared to peers.

According to 2012 Global Workforce Study, Singapore employees do not believe that they are paid fairly compared to both their colleagues and external parties holding similar jobs. Only 32% of Singapore employees surveyed believe that they are paid fairly compared to peers in other companies, which is lower than the global average of 46%.

Here's more from GWS 2012:

Singapore employees also view that healthcare and wellness programmes, as well as retirement benefits (only 20% agreed that they are sufficient compared to the global average of 46%) are not sufficient to meet their needs.

The study showesthat the focus is very much still on monetary rewards and employees may not be clear on the value of the ―total rewards that they are receiving. Hence, employers can do a better job of communicating that learning and career advancement opportunities, flexible work schedules, leave entitlements, and other perks are also a part of the employment deal.

Amrita Prasad, Towers Watson‘s Practice Leader, Organisational Surveys & Insights in Singapore said, "Employers in Singapore need to look at sustainable engagement. They should focus on two aspects. First, they can provide the support employees need to do their work efficiently and effectively. We call this enablement. Employers can also create a healthy work environment — one that supports physical, social and emotional well-being. We refer to this as energy. When an organisation builds a workplace that actively marries high levels of employee engagement with enablement and energy, it opens the door wider to a significant performance lift."

The Towers Watson Global Workforce Study 2012 covers more than 32,000 employees selected from research panels that represent the populations of full-time employees working in large and mid-size organisations across a range of industries in 29 markets around the world. It was fielded online during February and March 2012.

The Singapore sample includes 1,002 employees. The study is designed to help companies better understand their diverse employee segments and the factors that influence employee performance on the job by gauging changing attitudes that affect attraction, retention, engagement and productivity.