Dive Brief:
- Employers plan to increase salary budgets by 3% from 2021 to 2022, according to Nov. 12 survey results from XpertHR. The projection is the same as the actual increase that took place from 2020 to 2021.
- Retention and recruitment were the top forces of "upward pressure" on budgets, employers said, with 79% of respondents reporting these as a cause. Market rates, inflation/cost of living and "the economy" were the next top forces of upward pressure on salary budgets.
- XpertHR collected results from 429 employers for the survey, which was conducted between Sept. 7 and Oct. 5. The employers represent an estimated 2,019,015 workers.
Dive Insight:
The projection demonstrates a business-as-usual approach to salary budgeting despite employees' desire for greater compensation and shakeups like the Great Resignation and #Striketober.
Employees have been signaling a demand for greater compensation for months; a Society of Human Resources Management survey from the summer showed that among employees who are job searching, 53% said better compensation was their reason for doing so — the top reason cited. These results align with a different survey from the spring, which showed nearly half of workers felt they were underpaid.
Certain companies have made news in recent months for boosting pay to attract workers, although these employers have more typically been in industries like retail and food service. Unionized workers across the country have been working to increase their compensation as well, through strikes and other organized action.
While few changes are anticipated for workers' overall compensation, the report found that employees may have some bonus-related benefits to look forward to. XpertHR found that the 2022 overall bonus potential, number of employees eligible for bonuses and value of bonus payouts are all expected to rise.
