TODAY
March 7, 2023
SINGAPORE — Wages in the technology sector are expected to grow slightly this year despite a spate of industry layoffs signalling a slowdown in the sector as demand for tech talent is still high for non-tech sectors such as finance and even hospitality, said economists and human resource (HR) experts.
Wages for software engineers grew 7.6 per cent last year to an all-time high following sizzling 22 per cent growth in 2021, said a report by tech talent platform NodeFlair and technology accelerator Iterative released on Tuesday (March 7).
Experts said that overall tech sector wages growth in 2023 will likely be in single digits at best, with one saying that they could suffer a slight dip at worst, though it is "difficult to make precise predictions" due to the sector's volatile nature.
However, one HR expert warned tech employers against assuming that in the wake of the industry layoffs they can hire top tech talents for lower wages.
When the tech sector comes roaring back, such penny-pinching firms may not be able to retain their tech headcount, the expert said.
Salaries for some tech roles, such as software engineers, skyrocketed between 2021 and 2022.
The NodeFlair report said that of the top 15 tech companies that job seekers searched for, six of them pay their employees at least 20 per cent more than the market median, while most others pay at least 10 per cent more.
The increase in wages in recent years means that junior software engineers, for example, now earn a median base salary of S$5,000 a month, mid-level and senior engineers are earning up to S$7,000 and S$8,000 respectively, while managers pull in a median base salary of as high as S$13,750.
The growth comes despite a series of high-profile layoffs in the tech sector including high-profile firms such as Google, Twitter, Shopee and Meta.
"While there have been high-profile layoffs in the second half of 2022, there were still many growth opportunities in the first half of the year," said NodeFlair co-founder Adrian Goh.
"Additionally, it is important to note that not all roles in the tech sector have seen the same growth, with some experiencing a slight dip."
For example, roles such as quality assurance technicians and system engineers have seen a slight fall in salaries, according to the report.
Mr Goh that the slowing of salary growth for software engineers from 22 per cent in 2021 to 7.6 per cent in 2022 does not come as a surprise, as the growth in the industry over the course of the pandemic had been “unsustainable”.
He expects salary growth for tech roles in general to further taper this year.
“Based on the current market conditions, it's reasonable to expect salaries in the tech industry to stabilise this year.”
"At best, there may be single-digit growth, while at worst, there could be a slight dip," he said.
