Most Hungarian Firms Plan Wage Increase in 2023

The expectations of Hungarian companies have become more pessimistic for the 2023 economic year, but half of the companies still expect growth next year and a larger share of them plan to increase wages, according to a recent HR Panorama 2022 study by Profession.hu.

The findings of the study, which examines current labor market challenges and expectations for next year, were published in a statement on Thursday.

During the survey, 63% of the companies surveyed indicated that they plan to increase wages by 2023. 4% of firms expect a wage increase of less than 5%, 21% plan to raise wages between 5% and 9%, nearly half of them by 10-14%, while 25% plan to raise wages by more than 15%.

The majority of employers plan to retain their current workforce with the planned wage increases.

The analysis shows that it has become more difficult than last year for companies to replace workers who have been made redundant. While half of the firms surveyed in 2021, 60% of this year's respondents said that fewer people are applying for advertised positions, and 75% are finding it challenging to find the right candidates.

Three quarters of firms are affected by labor turnover, and the proportion of firms with turnover of 3% or more has increased compared to last year, with one in three reporting turnover of over 10%. The most affected sectors are food, other light manufacturing, heavy industry and machinery, transport, post and storage.

The data was collected through an online questionnaire in August and September 2022 among Profession.hu's client base, with 240 firms surveyed in the first round, 345 in the second and 398 in the third.