The finance, investment sector has highest popular salary ranging from VND5-70 million ($322.79-3,013), a survey has found.
Popular salary refers to the median salary range of 50 percent of those surveyed, leaving out the upper and lower quartiles in order not to skew the data.
In the finance/investment sector, the top 25 percent of executives surveyed said they got over VND70 million ($3,013) per month, the highest salary levels in the survey conducted by recruitment firm VietnamWorks.
The 2019 salary for jobseekers in Vietnam survey polled 5,500 job seekers in January 2019 across four experience levels: entry, experienced, team leader, and managerial/executive.
The next best was banking, with 25 percent earning above VND50 million ($2,152).
The five industries with the highest ‘popular salaries’ in Vietnam are finance/investment, banking, information technology, marketing, and construction, said the survey.
The popular salary for managers/executives in these sectors ranging from VND25-70 million ($1,076-3,013), with VND35 million ($1,506) being the median.
The construction industry was kindest to fresh graduates applying for entry-level positions, with their mid-range salary being around VND7.5 million ($322.79), higher than in any other industry.
One fourth of entry-level construction employees surveyed said their starting salary exceeded VND10 million ($430.39).
The five industries with the lowest maximum salary were administrative/clerical, mechanical engineering, customer service, accountancy, and sales.
For administrative/clerical positions, the median salary for experienced employees was only VND8 million ($344.34), while the maximum salary for top managerial positions was VND20 million ($860.86).
The highest salaries across sectors were in HCM City, with Hanoi ranking second.
The survey also found that most job-seekers ranging from entry to executive levels regularly looked for salary information when looking for a job (above 80 percent). However, only one out of three vacancies is currently advertised with the salary.
The survey also found that around 30 percent of candidates, regardless of experience, desisted from applying for a job if the salary cannot be discerned.
Almost 80 percent of employees reacted if they did not get a raise in the first six months, with 46 percent trying to negotiate one and 26 percent trying to switch jobs.
However, when asked about their most recent salary increase, only 53.1 percent of respondents said they received a raise in the previous six months.
