Nationally, human resource departments may finally be able to deliver employees some much needed good news
regarding salaries.
A Towers Watson survey finds that companies plan to issue modestly larger pay raises to staffers and that the end of 2010 may signal a return of annual bonuses.
A survey of 1,046 U.S. companies conducted by Towers Watson Data Services found that companies are projecting merit increases of 2.7% for 2011, an increase from the 2.3% raise workers are receiving this year and 1.6% they received in 2009. The survey also found that the number of companies freezing salaries is declining. While 32% of companies froze salaries in 2009, the percentage decreased to 12% in 2010 and is expected to drop to only 5% in 2011.
In addition, look for performance to impact pay increases. For example, in 2010, workers who have below-average performance ratings will receive median merit increases of 1.4%. Workers who have average performance ratings this year will receive a median 2.6% increase, while workers who have the highest performance ratings will receive a 4.3% increase.
