About eight in 10 Malaysia-based employees are anticipating to get a bonus in 2019. As compared to the last year, this is a six-point rise, according to a survey conducted in the region by Randstad.

The Bonus Expectations survey is designed to get a glimpse of the employees’ mindset in the region. A cheery outlook towards annual bonuses directly translates into employee engagement.

“Employees are looking forward to be rewarded for their contributions and loyalty to the organisations they work for,” said Ryan Carroll, Country Director of Randstad Malaysia, in a press statement. Employees who had remained with the same employers during uncertain political and economic climate are more likely to report a higher expectation of bonuses.

About 98 percent of the respondents cited bonus as a crucial reason for their engagement with their respective organizations. However, 59 percent of them also added that there were other factors such as lack of growth opportunity which might push them to start looking for a new job.

However, about 39 percent of Malaysia-based employees said they would start looking for alternative jobs if they were to not receive a bonus this year.

Taking into consideration the perspective of employers, about 85 percent of the companies have included bonus payouts in their budget. About 79 percent of the employers said they had plans to reward their staff members through “a bonus averaging one to two months” and 20 percent are even going as far as awarding an average bonus of three to five months.

This percentage is however not in alignment with the overall employees’ expectation, wherein, 33 percent of those surveyed said they expected an average bonus of unto three to five months.

Economic slump in several sectors including manufacturing, property, construction and engineering would result in lower budgets for bonuses, according to Carroll. Competing priorities such as building digital capabilities to gear up for the future of work are more than likely to eat away from the budget allotted towards bonus payouts.

“We expect more companies to introduce inclusive HR policies that will promote work-life balance and learning opportunities to attain a highly-skilled and productive workforce,” Carroll added.

As employees gear up for their career goals for the next financial year, it is crucial for talent to start looking at ways in which they can build their learning capabilities and soft skills in order to succeed in a dynamically evolving labor market in Malaysia.