Long for wage rise director holds back (6)
I believe the answer is:
desire
'long for' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'wage rise director holds back' is the wordplay.
'holds' indicates a hidden word.
'back' says the letters should be written backwards.
'erised' is hidden in the letters of 'wage rise director'.
'erised' back-to-front is 'DESIRE'.
(Other definitions for desire that I've seen before include "Long for (something)" , "Want, wish for" , "Hanker after" , "Reside in longing" , "Concupiscence" .)