3 percent is the new pay raise norm

3 percent is the new pay raise norm

bonus-crop-600x338If you’re budgeting 3 percent raises for the majority of your workforce, you’re in good company, because 3 percent is the new pay raise standard.

That’s what an annual compensation survey by Towers Watson reported. Those who make the annual salary decisions are planning to hand out 3 percent raises to most employees next year — the same amount budgeted for 2015 and for 2014. Meantime, company recruiters are asking the spending planners to give them more flexibility in recruiting and retaining top talent as the battle for all-star performers continues to rage.

The wage differential for executives and nonexempt salaried and hourly isn’t much: executives should look for a 3.1 percent raise in their first paycheck in 2016, compared to 3 percent for the troops. Just about every company (98 percent) is planning on giving raises next year.

“To a large extent, 3 percent pay raises have become the new norm in corporate America. We really haven’t seen variation from this level for many years,” said Sandra McLellan, North America practice leader, Rewards, at Towers Watson. “While most organizations are finding the talent they need at current salary levels, we are seeing more employers prioritizing how their salary budgets are being spent, especially in light of their ongoing difficulty in attracting and retaining top performers or employees with critical skills.”