According to BAG Index, in Q1 of 2023, the BAG Employment Barometer was positive for all sectors. In Q1 of 2023, compared to Q4 of 2022, the employment barometer indicator improved in the trade (by 10.7 points), construction (by 5.2 points), manufacturing (by 1.9 points), and service (by 1.7 points) sectors.

In Q1 of 2023, compared to Q4 of 2022, the significant improvement of the employment barometer indicator in the trade sector can be associated with optimistic expectations regarding the growth of sales in that sector.

When examining employment, it is imperative to analyze the employee compensation dynamics in the process. Therefore, for the Q1 2023 survey, a number of questions were integrated into the survey and companies were asked additional questions about employee compensation. The survey results revealed that 48% of companies raised their employees’ salaries in Q4 2022 and Q1 2023, which is potentially attributable to a labor shortage and a lack of specialists in Georgia.

Indeed, many companies recognized these factors as hinderance for their business. Notably, in Q4 2022, 53% of surveyed companies identified a lack of specialists in the country as a hindering factor, while 46% pointed to a labor shortage. Moreover, in Q1 2023, 48% of surveyed companies cited a lack of specialists as a hindrance, while 47% referred to a labor shortage.

Most surveyed companies (90% in Q4 2022 and 96% in Q1 2023) increased the salaries of their employees by 0-20%. Meanwhile, in Q1 2023, none of the surveyed companies increased the salaries of their employees by more than 40%.

By sector, in Q1 of 2023, the largest share of companies in the trade and manufacturing sectors recorded an increase in the salaries of employees. In Q2 of 2023, the largest share of companies planning to increase the wages of employees was recorded in the construction sector.