However, a majority of surveyed employees feel that the current remuneration is not in line with the cost of living, with only 17 percent believing that now is a good time to buy consumer durables.

According to the quarterly Bayt.com MENA Consumer Confidence Index survey, expectations for the future are primarily positive among respondents from the Kingdom, with 55 percent believing that their financial position will improve in a year's time, and 53 percent of respondents believe that the Kingdom's economy will take a turn for the better within the same period. This, according to 38 percent, will lead to there being more jobs available.

There is a neutral sentiment expressed by the majority of the respondents (36 percent) toward the likelihood of increase in their organization's employee-count for the coming quarter; 29 percent share a positive outlook on the same, with only 20 percent believing that there will be negative growth. The percentages are similarly weighted in terms of their company meeting staffing requirements in the coming three months — the majorities are neutral (a trend that is echoed across the region), with 19 percent optimistic and 27 percent pessimistic.

"The overall feeling is that while the coming year will be favorable for business and corporations, this may not necessarily reflect on employees' benefits," said Amer Zureikat, VP sales at Bayt.com.

With regards to the respondents' present situation, the general feeling across the region as per the Bayt.com survey is that the financial situation for them and their family is no different than it was within the previous year. The Kingdom follows this trend with 36 percent claiming their situation is the same; however 33 percent say that things are better, whereas with 23 percent claiming that their financial situation is now worse. The overwhelming majority state that in comparison to last year, their salary has not kept pace with the cost of living in the Kingdom.

In terms of employment, as per the bayt.com survey, only 17 percent of respondents appear to be satisfied with their current job and career prospects. Neutral sentiments toward their current employment situation are felt by 42 percent, and 34 percent indicated low satisfaction. With reference to the possibility for career growth in their current organization, an equally split 70 percent indicated neutral (35 percent) or low (35 percent) satisfaction.

Statistics show that feelings toward the level of job security in the Kingdom are relatively balanced; most respondents (36 percent) have a neutral opinion of their job security, 27 percent are highly satisfied and 30 percent are unsatisfied.

"Our survey demonstrates that the majority of employees in the Kingdom are indifferent or less to their current career status, which shows that there is certainly room for improvement. The general sentiment is that an increase in salary could be due, in correlation with the perceived increase in costs of living," Zureikat added.

Data for the quarterly Bayt.com Consumer Confidence Index survey was collected online from June 1-July 17, 2011, with 7,245 respondents aged over 18 years, covering GCC Arab, North African, Levant, Western Expatriate and Asian nationalities. Countries who participated are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Pakistan.