Salary Budget Survey Shows Companies are Paying More

As 2018 comes to a close, most HR teams have turned their attention to 2019 salary budget planning—a task that should not take place without reputable market data. In this strong job market, ensuring salaries are competitive across your organization may keep your workforce focused on their own group’s 2019 planning, rather than spending time over the holidays testing the waters for higher pay elsewhere. Pearl Meyer’s 2019 Compensation Planning Survey is a valuable source of reliable, current data that will help you make informed decisions as you plan for the upcoming year.

A Key Three-Year Trend

Across the board, salary budget figures are up and more companies than ever are planning to give increases. In fact, an impressive 94% of surveyed organizations are planning a compensation increase program in 2019, up from 91% just a year ago. A notable shift has occurred this year, as that increase is larger at 3.2% than the near-flat 3% year-over-year that we’ve become accustomed to. In fact, the average projected compensation increase budget is the highest since Pearl Meyer started collecting this data in 2012.

* 2019 survey results based on preliminary data (for 211 participating organizations) as of November 7, 2018.

When looking at compensation increase budgets for different employee types (e.g., exempt, non-exempt, management, or executive) there is little difference, suggesting this factor does not have significant bearing on projected salary budgets.

Global Increases

Survey participants also provided global data regarding the percentage adjustment to base compensation. This gives organizations a good starting point to determine if they are adjusting pay competitively abroad, as the Compensation Planning Survey collects this data for 60 countries outside of the United States. Three countries to note are India, China, and Russia, as survey respondents indicate that they are providing the largest percent adjustment to base compensation for employees in these countries.

* 2019 survey results based on preliminary data (for 211 participating organizations) as of November 7, 2018.

Preliminary Results Available Now

Preliminary results of the 2019 Compensation Planning Survey are now available to participating organizations. If you would like to participate in this complimentary survey, please contact survey@pearlmeyer.com.

Complimentary Custom Reports for all Participants

All survey participants can run unlimited complimentary custom reports. This tailored reporting tool makes the Compensation Planning Survey unique, as you can view up-to-date survey results for all participating organizations, or for a specific peer group of companies. The custom reporting tool is available to participating organizations immediately after completing the survey and a dedicated Account Manager is ready to assist you, should you have any trouble accessing this tool. Organizations that participate in the Compensation Planning Survey will also receive a free copy of the final report when it is published in January 2019.