Canterbury salaries are rising as firms up the ante to entice workers for the rebuild, Seek figures show.

The job search website found the region's average annual wage for jobs advertised on its website had grown 3.6 per cent to $66,415 in the first half of 2012.

The $2000 boost was the highest in the country.

The nationwide average rose only 1.4 per cent to $71,731. Seek-advertised jobs tend to be higher paid than avearge.

Wellington saw the second-strongest growth with a 2.4 per cent improvement, taking its average to $77,441 - the highest in the nation.

Largest city Auckland recorded only a 0.8 per cent rise to $73,297.

Wine region Marlborough had the largest drop in salaries, tanking 9.4 per cent to $61,931.

Seek New Zealand general manager Janet Faulding said the numbers were an accurate reflection of the job market.

The pervading global financial uncertainty, meant many Kiwi companies were hesitant to give pay rises which was shown by the low growth in salaries nationwide since January, she said.

''However, it's no surprise that salaries are up in the Canterbury region given the strong demand for workers to support the rebuild. In order to attract workers to the region, higher salaries are one of the additional perks favoured by many firms.''

An earlier Seek workforce survey showed a third of Kiwis do not expect to see any more money in their pay packets this year, due to firms keeping purse strings tight.

However, that survey also revealed a pay rise would encourage 38 per cent of New Zealanders to stay in their job, meaning firms who want to hold onto good staff, may need to consider bumping up pay packets to ensure they are in line with industry benchmarks, Faulding said.

''While not all companies will be able to stretch to pay rises in the coming months, any employer looking to recruit or retain staff should look to design comprehensive packages that offer not only an attractive pay packet, but also a range of non-monetary perks such as flexible working hours.'

- © Fairfax NZ News