Skills shortages, positive hiring intentions and a widening gap between candidate and employer salary expectations have been identified as the three main forces of salary pressure for HR talent in the year ahead. According to the 2011 Hays Salary Guide, released this week, these three factors will create a 'perfect storm' of pressure on salaries. "The employment market over the past 12 months was dominated by low unemployment and increased job vacancies," said Susan Drew, regional director of Hays. "At the same time, candidate confidence has continued to grow and skills shortages are now emerging. "Demand for internal recruiters has risen since many companies plan to increase staffing numbers significantly over the next 12 months. But despite demand, we have not seen any significant salary increases for internal recruiters and employers are consequently struggling to fill vacancies." The report shows that 11% of employers didn't increase salaries at all over the past 12 months; 37% increased salaries by less than 3%; and 43% increased salaries between 3% and 6%. "The exception has been the heavy industries in Western Australia and Queensland, where candidates with experience in the mining, oil & gas or engineering fields find themselves in high demand and are negotiating higher salaries," said Drew. Drew added that the improving market conditions will enable candidates to negotiate increases in 2011/12. "A number of organisations have already introduced bonus schemes in order to raise overall remuneration, with bonuses calculated on both individual and company performance," she said. The survey data shows that 44% of employers intend to increase salaries in their next review by between 3% and 6%, while only 6% will offer increases above 6%. Nearly half of employers (43%) intend to increase salaries by less than 3%. "Such low intentions are at odds with candidate expectations - particularly those of candidates in demand - and so we expect the gap between salary expectations to widen even further."