S2E2: How do young workers view pay?

The Straits Times Podcasts

Salaries need to be structured more flexibly to reflect broader aspirations.

Synopsis: Every first and third Monday of the month, get a headstart in your personal finance and career with The Straits Times.

Views on pay issues vary widely among young workers depending on their professional and life goals.

This was borne out in a survey of 1,000 young people commissioned by The Straits Times, carried out in May by market research firm Kantar and released in August.

In this episode, ST journalist Tay Hong Yi digs deeper into the implications of the results and underlying beliefs that give rise to different attitudes.

His guests are Dr Fermin Diez, a researcher on compensation issues with over 30 years of corporate experience, and young professional Jonathan Ng, who juggles being a business development manager with robotics company Otsaw while studying for a degree in marketing at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

Highlights (click/tap above):

2:38 How has working and studying at the same time influenced Jonathan’s views on salary?

4:10 How have career norms shifted?

8:33 Are companies keeping up with these shifting norms in how pay is designed?

12:43 Why does satisfaction with one’s salary and work-life balance decline with age?

15:29 Disclosing salary details

22:14 How can employers deal with inter-generational differences on how pay is perceived?

Read the feature by Prisca Ang discussed on the podcast: https://str.sg/9aLR

Read Tay Hong Yi's articles: https://str.sg/w6cz

Follow Tay Hong Yi on LinkedIn: https://str.sg/AAxy

Host: Tay Hong Yi ([e-mail])

Produced & edited by: Amirul Karim

Executive producers: Ernest Luis, Lynda Hong & Joanna Seow

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Kapitler

1. How do young workers view pay? (00:00:00)

2. Jonathan’s views on salary? (00:02:38)

3. How have career norms shifted? (00:04:10)

4. Why does job satisfaction decline with age? (00:12:43)

5. How will pay transparency impact work? (00:15:29)

6. How employers handle generational pay views? (00:22:14)