Dubai – Mubasher: Salaries in the UAE are expected to increase during 2019, a recent study said.

The study conducted by management consulting firm Korn Ferry covered almost 6,000 organisations with nearly 500,000 employees across major sectors in the GCC nation.

About 65% of the surveyed organisations are budgeting for an increase in remuneration rates, the study found.

“The private sector still remains heavily reliant on major projects which drive hiring requirements across key sectors including financial services, energy, property and construction,” Leith Ramsay, managing director of Korn Ferry, said.

Harish Bhatia, regional director of  Korn Ferry in the Middle East and Africa, noted that salaries are projected to grow within an average ranging between 2.5% and 4.5% in 2019.

“Tax-free salaries are no longer enough to attract and retain the best people,” Ramsay added.