Although 20 per cent of the country’s population earn between Dh18,000 and Dh37,000, only seven per cent are really satisfied with their salaries, according to jobsite Bayt.com and 
pollsters YouGov.

In addition, only one in five of UAE respondents manage to save a significant part of the salary.

“These figures reveal that even though some people earn much higher salaries in some countries, it doesn’t correlate that these high earners save more money, which might have been expected,” said Nassim Ghrayeb,
CEO of YouGov.

“This could be explained by the disparity between the cost of living and the increase in salary, or by the fact that high earners seek a lifestyle that matches their fat pay packets,”
Ghrayeb added.

The survey found that although the cost of living in the UAE had risen by 37 per cent, the average salary increase was just 15 per cent.

The UAE was one of the gloomiest countries in the Middle East regarding attitudes to the labour market
in the future.

Some 29 per cent of respondents said that they were pessimistic about economic growth in the future and greater job availability.

The careers that appeared to offer greater satisfaction were those in the oil and gas, and petrochemicals sectors, the survey found.

Among the least satisfying were those in the government, education and transport sectors.

Across the Middle East, 77 per cent of respondents felt that they have been hit hard by the economic crisis, and just 24 per cent of people in the UAE say they felt no effects.

The survey was carried out between December 2008 and January 2009 and involved 13,881 participants in 13 Middle Eastern countries.

martin@khaleejtimes.com