Your Trusted Partner for Recruitment in Bali

To better fulfill your recruitment needs, we at Remote People are here to help you find top talent in Bali more effectively than recruiting on your own. Our team understands the local language, customs, and the intricacies of the Bali talent market, giving you a significant advantage in securing the right candidates.

We know where to advertise your job openings to ensure maximum exposure and attract the best talent. Additionally, we assist in designing competitive, locally-appropriate compensation packages that not only appeal to top candidates but also help you optimize costs. 

Get in touch with us to navigate Bali’s recruitment landscape with confidence and ease.

Key takeaways

  • Bali is an economically important province of Indonesia.
  • Tourism is by far the most important industry on this island and contributes over 80% of GRDP.
  • Balinese workers are highly skilled in local and international languages as well as service delivery and technology.
  • Employers looking to source talent in Bali can engage the services of recruitment agencies and EORs to help them find workers.

Bali is a province and one of Indonesia’s 17,000 islands. Bali is a majority Hindu province and, because of its unique culture, has become a major tourist destination in Southeast Asia over the past 40 years. With a population of over 4.4 million people, Bali has its own economy powered mainly by tourism and agriculture that is worth at least 74.77 trillion IDR (Indonesian rupiah) (around 4.611 billion USD). This 5.36% year-on-year growth represents a healthy economy already sprung back after the pandemic slowdown.

Balinese workers have lived through decades of fairly intense tourism and have therefore gained language and job skills largely in the service sector. This can make these workers highly valuable as employees, both locally in Bali and as remote workers for organizations based abroad. In this article, we’ll look at the skills and qualities of Balinese workers, strategies to recruit them, and service providers you can partner with to help you do so.

Overview of Bali's Recruitment Industry

According to the Badan Pusat Statistik Provinsi Bali (Statistics Department of Bali Province), there were 2.73 million people in Bali’s labor force in 2023. This represents 62% of the total population and an increase from the previous year. The unemployment rate in Bali was only 3.73%, which means the labor market is somewhat tight, and it can be slightly difficult to recruit new workers. As we’ve mentioned, most people are employed in the tourism and hospitality industry. The area with the biggest increase last year was in the provision of food and drink and accommodation. At the same time, the proportion of people in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, Bali’s most traditional sector, declined the most in the same period. According to this department, the pandemic was still having an effect on the Balinese economy in early 2023, causing higher-than-normal levels of unemployment and reduced working hours for tens of thousands of workers.

After decades of intense development of Bali’s tourism industry, workers are very much used to international visitors. They’ve developed English and other international language skills as well as the service, administration, and management skills necessary to power this industry. Agriculture plays a diminishing part in Bali’s economy as tourism produces over 80% of the island’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP). This is supplemented by growth in business and financial services as well as increased foreign exports of rice, pork, coffee, furniture, and sculptural crafts.

Balinese workers tend to be paid slightly above the national average in Indonesia. The minimum wage in the province is 2,813,672 IDR/month (about 175 USD/month). Average salaries are significantly higher, however, at around 16 million IDR/month (around 985 USD). In addition, employers are obligated to pay 4% of their employees’ salaries to social programs for old age savings, pensions, and healthcare. Employees contribute between 10.24-11.74% of their wages to these programs as well as accident and unemployment insurance. Even with these contributions, it’s clear that you can hire Balinese workers far more affordably than in other countries.

Balinese workers may rely somewhat on their local networks and recommendations when looking for employment. However, for the most part, they now also look online for jobs on top job sites. The most popular of these in Bali include Indeed, Jobstreet, Glassdoor, Jobindo, and Karir. As an employer, you can also build your brand on social media while also posting your job vacancies there for Balinese workers to see. The most popular social media platforms in Bali include WhatsApp, X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.

Scale Your Team with Expert Headhunters in Bali

Having trouble finding top talent in Bali? Partner with us, and our expert headhunters will connect you to the right candidates to accelerate your growth.

  • Bali Hiring Expertise: Remote People provides tailored recruitment solutions to meet the unique demands of recruiting professionals in Bali.
  • Efficient Talent Sourcing: We identify highly qualified candidates quickly, streamlining the process for businesses operating in Bali.
  • Affordable Solutions: We offer competitive rates, making it easier for companies to secure top talent while managing costs effectively.
  • Bali Recruitment & EOR: We combine recruitment services with Employer of Record (EOR) support, simplifying both hiring and compliance in Bali.

Get a Customized Recruitment Strategy for Bali Today!

What are the Benefits of Recruiting in Bali?

Whether you’re looking to hire local people to help you expand your business into the Balinese market or you need employees to work for you remotely, Bali’s workers can be highly valuable. Here are some of the reasons why these employees are so highly sought after both inside and outside of the province:

Affordable Workers

The minimum wage in Bali is far lower than in other countries around the world and even in the Southeast Asian region. Even when paying average local salaries and social security contributions, Balinese employees can be highly affordable for most foreign-based businesses.

Learn more

Language Skills

The local language of Balinese and the national language of Indonesian are spoken by essentially all Balinese residents. However, a majority also speak English as the main language for tourism and many also speak Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French, German, and Russian. These language skills can be valuable for doing business locally or around the world.

Increasing Technical Skills

Balinese workers are increasingly gaining skills that help them take on employment as software developers, IT specialists, virtual assistants, accounts, and content creators.

What Legal Considerations Apply when Recruiting in Bali?

When recruiting in Bali, you have to be aware of the laws of Indonesia, which cover employment practices in the province. The major pieces of legislation to consider include Government Regulation in Lieu of Law No. 2 Year 2022, Law No. 21 of 2000 on Labor Union, and Law No. 2 of 2004 on Industrial Relations Dispute Settlement. Some of the key points of law you’ll need to know to manage your Balinese workers compliantly include:

Contracts

Contracts in Bali can be written or oral. They can be either permanent or fixed terms that cannot be longer than three years, though many fixed-term contracts are seasonal. They can include probationary periods of not more than three months, and during this time, it’s allowable to pay workers less than the minimum wage.

Working Hours and Overtime

Balinese employees typically work 40 hours a week. These can be divided into five eight-hour days or a six-day week of five seven-hour days and one five-hour day. Overtime hours can be worked by written agreement and must not exceed three hours per day or 14 hours per week. Overtime is paid at a rate of 150% of normal wages for the first hour each day and 200% for subsequent hours.

Leave

Expecting mothers are entitled to three months of maternity leave fully paid by the employer. Fathers receive just two days of paid paternity leave upon the birth of a child. Balinese workers are entitled to at least 12 working days of paid leave per year. They also receive 15 paid public holidays each year.

Social Security and Medicare Contributions

Employers must contribute 4% of their employees’ salaries to old age savings, pensions, and healthcare schemes. Employees contribute 10.24-11.74% of their salaries to these programs and accident and unemployment insurance.

Terminations

Workers can be terminated for gross negligence of five days or unjustified absence from work. For other reasons, employers must negotiate terminations with workers or their unions 30 days in advance. Severance pay may also be required at the rate of one month’s pay for each year of service to the employer to a maximum of nine months’ pay.

How to Choose a Recruitment Agency in Bali

If you’ve decided to hire Balinese workers, you may choose to work with a professional recruiter to help you source the best talent possible. These professionals can be engaged through Employers of Record (EORs) that also provide recruitment services or through recruitment agencies. The following conditions should be kept in mind when choosing a service provider to partner with:

Price

Recruitment fees vary widely between service providers so it’s essential to find one that fits into your recruiting budget. Be sure to obtain accurate quotes from service providers and ask extensive questions to ensure that you won’t meet with hidden fees or extra charges later in the process.

Experience

Look for a recruiter who has been hired in Bali before. Their past successes will help inform their work with your company and hopefully lead to better candidates and greater hiring success.

Industry Expertise

If you’re hiring for a particular industry that may require unique skills and exceptional experience, consider working with a provider that specializes in this area. They will normally have workers in their talent pools that are highly suited to your industry rather than generalists.

Reviews

Look at the online ratings and reviews of the service providers you’re considering. Though often disproportionally negative, these should turn up red flags if a provider has done a particularly poor job for a past client or candidate. Try to choose a provider with only minor complaints on its record or, better yet, lots of positive reviews from highly satisfied customers.

Recruiting Bali Employees

Bali is one of the most vibrant and economically advanced parts of the large nation of Indonesia. With an economy and job market driven largely by tourism, this province has become more developed than other regions. Local workers have attained important skills that make them highly valuable yet also very affordable in the international employment market. To help you with your hiring in Bali, contact Remote People today to find out how this experienced recruiter can help you bring Balinese workers onto your team efficiently.

Recruit Top Talent Across Asia with Our Recruitment Expertise

Navigating the complexities of hiring and workforce management across different countries can be challenging. Partnering with the best recruitment agencies ensures you stay compliant with local labor laws, streamline the hiring process, and secure top talent. Learn how Remote People can help you recruit in the following countries:

Recruitment Coverage in Asia-Pacific
ArmeniaAustraliaBali
BangladeshBhutanBrunei
CambodiaChinaFiji
GeorgiaGrenadaGuam
Hong KongIndiaIndonesia
JapanKazakhstanKiribati
KyrgyzstanLaosMacau
MalaysiaMaldivesMarshall Islands
MicronesiaMyanmarNauru
NepalNew ZealandPakistan
PalauPapua New GuineaPhilippines
Pitcairn IslandSaint Kitts and NevisSaint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesSamoaSingapore
Solomon IslandsSouth KoreaSri Lanka
TaiwanThailandTimor-Leste
TongaTrinidad and TobagoTurkmenistan
TuvaluUzbekistanVanuatu
Vietnam  

Ready to expand your team in Bali? Remote People’s recruitment services offer tailored solutions to meet your hiring needs.

Contact us today to discuss how we can help your business grow in Bali.