Companies who have frozen wages - when will we see inflation inline increases

moneyinmypocket

I have spoken with many who had pay frozen for last 5 years - once upon a time wages where increasing inline with wages, when do you think we will get back to this? I personally think companies will drag there feet and not offer across board increases for many more years to come

vivatifosi

I don't think there's an across the board answer to this.

Employers paying minimum wage will have to put their wages up now, because there has just been an increase.

Private sector businesses with a pay freeze will for the most part increase salaries when the conditions in their industry improve and they feel they can. They'll otherwise reach a point where their best people jump ship to their competitors.

Public sector - I know already that I won't get a pay rise next year and that's now several years in a row. I can't see a point at which there is one on the horizon. However it is starting to hurt and they will lose people. With ongoing changes the salary will be about 20% lower and there's only so long you can do that with the percentage getting worse and worse without saying enough's enough. Particularly if you can go elsewhere (which not everyone can due to speciality of role).

Carl31

If I want a pay rise, I move jobs, I have never counted on annual increases

wymondham

Carl31 wrote: »

If I want a pay rise, I move jobs, I have never counted on annual increases

too true. Many companies who used to review wages each year now assume no review 'due to the hard times' - once one does it they all follow! I think the days of a wage review with your appraisal are now gone.

I left and went self-employed after four years with no rise. Funny as money was not available for wages, but the BMW's at the top got bigger each year!

Gra76

I work for a relatively small private company emplying around 20 staff, and for the last 4 years I've seen a total of 2% pay increase in that time, mainly because our new MD has decided that he thinks we're all paid too much to start with....which I can assure you we're not!

I work 50 hour weeks but if I worked a fairly standard 40 hour week I'd be a fraction above the national average, so we get paid fairly well only due to the hours we work, not the hourly rate.

He decided he wasn't giving pay rises last year and has said the same this year. Yet he's been on 4 holidays abroad this year already, and is due to go to Dubai for 2 weeks next Wednesday....on top of which he's just bought a brand new BMW X5. To replace his 3 year old X5. Which he's just bought from the lease company so his wife can have it to replace her 3 year old Audi TT 3.2 Quattro.

He wouldn't pay any bonuses out last year because he said the company didn't make any money. He said there's unlikely to be any bonus this year because again, he says we haven't made any money. I'm not surprised looking at the money he's spending on himself. Last christmas the entire office staff left in unison when the MD came through and said there were no bonuses, but we could draw lots on how a few cans of beer and a couple of bottles of wine were shared out. These were brought in by suppliers and customers...he didn't buy these either.

On top of that, the previous MD (his father in law) is still creaming a salary out of the company, even though he's supposedly retired.

I love private companies.

Not seeing a wage increase doesn't annoy me as much as it does that the MD is peeing money up the wall in plain sight and then saying he can't afford to give pay rises...

shortchanged_2

moneyinmypocket wrote: »

I have spoken with many who had pay frozen for last 5 years - once upon a time wages where increasing inline with wages, when do you think we will get back to this? I personally think companies will drag there feet and not offer across board increases for many more years to come

Having a bad day?

I thought the economy was well on the up in your eyes.

And there will be very little chance of your beloved HPI if wages don't grow, ouch.

grizzly1911

Heard something on the news about retailers expectations are that the current spending patterns of consumers are here to stay for many years to come. Someone from Tesco said that this was now the "norm" and to be modeled against.

Percy1983

Not seen one for many years so I started earning more elsewhere, simple really. If you don't like it, change it.

The_White_Horse

if public sector workers don't get a pay rise (hahaha) for a decade they will still be too highly paid.

Jamie_Carter

Just because the government says that we are now out of recession doesn't mean that companies aren't still struggling. In fact you only have to walk down any high street to see more and more of the big chain stores closing. So as the wage bill is the biggest expense for most companies, many can't afford pay rises.

Not all private companies have MD's who are still taking huge pay rises. In fact the good bosses will also have a pay freeze, if not a pay cut.

When the choice is no pay rise or no job, I know which I would pick.

As for public sector workers. Some of the jobs are very specialised, and don't have equivalents in the private sector. So these people are usually stuck in the job that they do. Even though many of these professions are essential to the rest of us when we actually need them. Although you do get the odd ignorant person who criticises them until the day they actually need them.

N1AK

moneyinmypocket wrote: »

I have spoken with many who had pay frozen for last 5 years - once upon a time wages where increasing inline with wages, when do you think we will get back to this? I personally think companies will drag there feet and not offer across board increases for many more years to come

We're currently negotiating what are effectively pay freezes at a number of sites to cover the next 3 years. In fact, for our main site it will likely lead to overall wage reductions.

With so many people available to do low skilled work companies have little reason to increase wages for many roles. I wouldn't expect to strong wage growth for 3-4 years as we need the economy to recover and drive down unemployment first. We may not see the kind of wage growth vs inflation we've seen in the past even after a recovery.