The banking and financial services sector is known for its large bonus payouts. Some companies had even rewarded their high-performing staff with 9-month bonuses in past years. As a result, people are attracted to work in the banking and financial services industry for its high salaries and large bonuses.
In Hong Kong SAR, 89% of the employees working in the bank and financial services sector are expecting to receive a bonus this year. Out of them, 35% said that they are anticipating a 3 to 5-month bonus.
bonuses important for employee retention in banks
Close to half of the banking and finance employees (49%) said that they will resign if did not receive any bonus this year.
Rick Chung, Director of the Banking and Financial Services team at Randstad Hong Kong said, “Employees in Hong Kong SAR are very motivated by extrinsic rewards such as high salaries and bonuses. Therefore, if the company is not able to meet their employees’ bonus expectations, it is highly likely that their staff will start looking for a new opportunity, which is not difficult in a candidate-short market and especially if they have in-demand skills and experience.”
companies may not meet employees’ bonus expectations
35% of the respondents said that they are anticipating a 3 to 5-month bonus, but only 15% of the banks and financial firms are meeting those bonus expectations. 79% of the companies will be giving out bonuses of up to 2 months.
Chung adds, “The Sino-US trade war and changing global regulations will have an impact on Hong Kong SAR’s economic performance. Therefore, companies will take a more conservative approach towards salaries and bonuses. Instead, they may focus on improving the employee experience to promote engagement and build loyalty. Companies may play a more active role in the development of their employees through training and mentorship programmes.”
more banks have tiered-bonus schemes
69% of the financial firms practice tiered-bonus schemes, which means that the amount of bonus that an employee receives is dependent on their performance for the past 12 months.
This type of bonus scheme motivates employees to be more productive and efficient in the way they work to meet their targets so that they receive more bonus.
“We expect more companies to adopt tiered-bonus schemes in the future as it does not only result in a more productive workforce, but it also helps the HR and finance teams be more flexible in their budget planning and adapt to business priorities,” Chung concludes.
