A new survey from business leader platform Lattice has revealed that most self-employed and full-time workers expect the rising cost of living to be a core consideration in their pay adjustments. 53 per cent of respondents to the survey, conducted for Lattice by Censuswide, said the cost of living should be among the most important considerations within compensation reviews.
However, in spite of this, just 26 per cent of respondents to the survey said the cost of living was currently a factor in compensation review processes. The survey comes amid sharply rising inflation, as well as considerable market volatility.
The research surveyed more than 1,000 employees and self-employed workers (excluding sole traders) based in the UK and working at medium to large businesses during February 2022. Close to 30 per cent said that, with good performance, they now expected to have their pay evaluated for an increase every 3-6 months. 47 per cent felt that at least a 4-5 per cent pay rise would be required to adequately reflect the value of their work.
The survey also looked at bias in pay compensation decisions, with 51 per cent agreeing that biases around race, age, gender or other factors played a role in how companies went about pay and performance reviews. 36 per cent of these respondents said their company was not doing enough to tackle these biases, while 30 per cent said their companies were using technology to tackle such issues.
Lattice Advisory Services vice-president Dave Carhart said: “A convergence of factors — including increased turnover, rising inflation, volatile markets and the current cost of living crisis — are putting increased pressure on compensation cycles.”
“This report reveals how employee perceptions around compensation are evolving in the midst of all this upheaval – and provides important insights for leaders who will be tasked with balancing employee expectations alongside shifting business needs.”
