Prevalence of AI Usage, Careful Wage Management, and a Strong Demand for Flexible Workforce Models: Robert Walters Salary Survey 2026

Talent snapshot

• Beyond compensation and benefits, talent value having flexible work arrangements, job security and stability, and inspiring colleagues and culture from an employer
• Expectation gap: 27% of employers are likely to give new hires a pay rise of above 10%. However 83% of talent looking to move jobs expect more than a 10% pay rise, with 23% of them likely to request a more than 20% increase in salary

Employer snapshot

• 37% of employers plan to increase their headcount, with most of them looking to increase it by 5-10%
• 69% of employers are looking to give a salary increment of at least 3% in 2026 for current employees, and 56% are likely to give a salary increment of at least 6% to new hires
• Lack of candidates with the right skills/experience, gap in salary and benefit expectations, and talent staying put, are among the challenges faced by companies in attracting talent
• Soft skills: 65% of employers value Interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills, and 59% value problem-solving and critical thinking among their employees
• Contract Hiring:
  • 55% of companies will start or continue to hire contractors in 2026
  • 74% of companies hiring contractors do so for project or short-term needs. Other reasons include headcount limitations, and a “wait to try” attitude.

AI-driven workplace

• 78% of the businesses expect up to half of their workforce to need reskilling due to AI advancements
• Employers are looking for talent with skillsets in critical thinking and fact-checking, data analysis, and are highly adaptable.
• Top concerns by professionals over AI adoption at the workplace include having their jobs displaced due to automation, bias or unfair treatment due to algorithms, and the lack of relevant training.

• 2026 Salary Predictions: Moderate overall salary growth but with unevenness across the market

The job market for 2026 will remain challenging. Demand for talent in AI, data and cloud skills continues to outstrips supply, resulting in a skills mismatch. Firms are cautious in pay planning due to economic and sectoral uncertainty. On the talent front, candidates are expecting job offers to go beyond higher pay, and include areas such as flexibility, learning opportunities and purpose.

The market will continue to see volatility, combined with cost pressures and the lack of skilled talent in Singapore. Companies are therefore tapping on flexible resource models, which include contract roles and project-based hiring, as a valuable tool to help them stay agile.

Talent moving between jobs can expect increments of 5 to 15%, or up to 20% for niche areas such as AI or cybersecurity. Employees staying with their current companies will see their salaries increase by 3-6%% to align with inflation.

These are among the key findings on employees and companies in Singapore, based on global talent solutions business Robert Walters’ Salary Survey 2026, an authoritative analysis and benchmark of salary trends.

Getting the Workplace AI-ready

Industries such as Banking and Finance are starting to see AI applications go from pilot phases to actual implementation, and various industries across the board are seeing AI usage increase. 33% of companies said that they have already introduced AI with the objective of optimising headcount, while 30% are planning to do so. Functions that they see are most at risk with the integration of AI are Administration and Business Support (50%), IT and digital transformation (29%) and Accounting and Finance (28%). 78% of the businesses expect up to 50% of their workforce to need reskilling/upskilling due to advancements in AI over the next 5 years. Top skills that employers are looking for in an AI-driven workplace are Critical thinking and fact-checking (71%), Data Analysis (59%), Adaptability (44%) and Ethical decision-making (41%).

Professionals using AI at the workplace tend to mostly use AI tools for research and information gathering (50%), chatbots or virtual assistants for communication and support (43%), copywriting, content creation and editing (42%). Top concerns over AI adoption at the workplace include having their jobs displaced due to automation (48%), bias or unfair treatment due to algorithms (such as in hiring or promotions) (42%), lack of training to keep up with AI skills (41%). To prepare themselves for AI-driven changes in the workplace, one in two (46%) of professionals surveyed said they have started to research or pursue AI-related training.

Flexible Workforce Models - Beyond Traditional Permanent Roles

When asked about their hiring plans for 2026, 37% of employers are looking to increase their headcount, with most of them (30%) looking to increase it by 5-10%. 55% of companies will start or continue to hire contractors in 2026. Top reasons for hiring contractors include hiring for project or short-term needs (74%), limited headcount (36%), and a desire to not commit to a permanent headcount yet (33%).

Companies continue to need to explore Employee Value Proposition (EVP) offerings to attract and retain talent. Among the benefits offered to employees currently, the top initiatives were giving a Bonus Scheme (80%), Parental Leave (71%), Flexi/remote working (65%), Commercial medical insurance (65%) and Dental cover (58%).

Modest Wage Increments even as Companies Face Challenges in Sourcing for Staff

Most employers shared that they are likely to give a modest salary increment in 2026 to current employees. 69% of the employers who responded said they would be giving at least 3%, among which 7% of them said it would be more than 6%. Around a quarter (27%) is likely to give a pay rise of less than 3%, while 4% said that they will not be increasing salaries. On the other hand, 57% of professionals expect at least a 3% increment from their current employer, with 14% expecting more than a 6% increment.

For new hires, 56% of employers are likely to give them a pay rise of at least 6%, among which 27% of them expect to give pay rises of above 10%. Among professionals looking to move jobs, 83% expect more than a 10% pay rise, with 23% of them likely to request a more than 20% increase in salary.

Top challenges when sourcing for staff include:

• Lack of quality candidates with the right skills/experience (72%)
• Salary and benefit expectations too high (53%)
• Qualified professionals are hesitant to move (25%)
• High competition for candidates (counteroffers and buy-backs) (25%)

Beyond compensation and benefits (62%), professionals shared that flexible work arrangements (42%), Job security and stability (39%), and inspiring colleagues and culture (34%), are what they would value in an employer.

2026 Industry Predictions for Singapore

The rapid growth in demand for AI and Data skills and automation of transactional roles dominated the job market in 2025. Employers focused on a skills-based workforce planning approach, invested in targeted upskilling/reskilling (AI, cloud, data), and used AI to automate screening & candidate engagement. Talent with skills in AI, data and cloud were more mobile, mid-career professionals saw stronger incentives to reskill, and increased competition for AI-savvy candidates led to more selective hiring and higher packages in those niche areas.

Companies took a cautious approach to pay reviews and pay planning, with talent with in-demand skillsets benefitting from stronger pay adjustments, but others seeing stagnant salary growth. Companies have had to balance between the cost of living and pressure of retaining talent in terms of increments and benefits. Contract or gig roles continued to be made available to support business needs, while those in slower sectors faced slower hiring and more contract roles.

2026 will see the prevalence of AI usage, sustained careful wage management to persist, and a stronger demand for flexible workforce models. There will be continued demand for AI, data and cloud skilled talent. Companies will continue to focus on skills-based hiring, instead of looking at traditional qualifications, as well as internal mobility and talent development programs to retain and nurture talent. As companies respond to the volatility and agility required in the market, the workforce will see traditional permanent roles matched with an increasing number of contract positions and project-based hiring.

Gone are the days of market-wide increments. Attracting and retaining talent has become more challenging due to the volatility and pace the market is working to, combined with cost pressures and lack of skilled talent in all areas. Companies will need to stay flexible, explore Employee Value Proposition

"(EVP) offerings to draw talent, and tap on analytics for market intelligence and workforce planning. Employers can also look into tapping on executive recruitment firms to source for leadership talent, and use leadership assessment and coaching to retain and evolve talent. They can invest in contractors to meet the pace and project-based work requirements, and look into outsourcing and managed services to support business scale and control costs,” said Kirsty Poltock, Country Manager at Robert Walters Singapore.

Other Singapore-based insights of the Salary Survey include:

• Top industries that are likely to see the highest attrition (Respondents will be looking to change jobs in 2026): Supply Chain & Procurement (82%), Accounting & Finance (79%), Tech & Transformation (78%), and Sales & Marketing (78%).

• Top industries which can expect pay rises in 2026: Accounting and Finance (98%), Supply Chain & Procurement (98%), Sales & Marketing (97%), Human Resources & Business Support (97%).
• Soft skills valued by employers include Interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills (65%), Problem-solving and critical thinking (59%), and having a positive attitude, emotional intelligence and empathy (44%).
• Top in-demand professions for 2026 are
  • Accounting & Finance: Financial Analysts, Finance Business Partners, Finance Managers
  • Banking & Financial Services: Fintech & Quant Specialists, Risk & Compliance Specialists, Wealth & Portfolio Managers
  • Human Resources & Business Support: HR Business Partners, HR Generalists, Transformation Specialists
  • Sales & Marketing: Head of Growth, General Manager, Marketing Automation Specialist
  • Supply Chain, Procurement & Logistics: Supply & Demand Planners, Supply Chain Project Managers, Analysts
  • Technology & Transformation: Cybersecurity Specialists, Data/ AI Engineers, Cloud Engineers

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