Workers’ attitudes on compensation tighten up amid inflation

Are most workers truly satisfied with their pay? You probably don’t need survey results to tell you the answer. But after a couple of years of rather steep inflation, it wouldn’t be surprising if pay was on people’s minds even more than usual.

Some large, newly released studies underscore the point, although forming a clear image of workers’ sentiments is somewhat challenging.

BambooHR surveyed 1,500 full-time, salaried employees. To be sure, 72% of them said they feel positive emotions when describing their compensation. That was down from 83% in a similar 2022 survey, but still a strong indication of satisfaction.

On the other hand, the average-sized salary increase, at 3.6%, was down sharply for a second year and hovering not far above the 2.4% inflation rate. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 73% of the employees said they feel they deserve an increase in pay for their current job responsibilities.

But for the second year in a row, according to BambooHR, two in five salaried workers haven’t received a pay increase in the past 12 months. Among those who did, 32% were dissatisfied with the raise, up from 23% in last year’s survey.

Half of those polled said they’re currently struggling to make ends meet because of rising costs, while 43% said they’re working more hours than ever. Three in five are paying off debt, costing them an average of 30% of their paycheck. (Interestingly, though, 27% said they wouldn’t want a raise if it meant more work.)

More than a third (37%) said there is no benefit they could receive that would make them willing to take a pay cut.

BambooHR said the survey “reveals a critical juncture in the relationship between compensation and employee satisfaction. In short, for a majority of employees, it’s all about money, money, money.”

Another study, by Checkr, a provider of background-check solutions, polled 3,000 employed Americans, 750 from each of four generational groups — baby boomers, Gen X, millennials and Gen Z).

Collectively, a third of the employees said compensation was the biggest driver of workplace unhappiness in 2024. These workers were even less satisfied than the ones surveyed by BambooHR, with just 46% saying they were fairly compensated this year for the value they brought to their employer.

Among Gen Z and millennial workers, 51% and 47%, respectively, said they would find a new job if they weren’t given a raise for 2025. Sixty percent said compensation is the clear-cut, the top motivating factor today when accepting a new job. Millennials (68%) felt most strongly about that.

Indeed, more than half (55%) of the survey respondents said the thing they want most from their managers in 2025 is higher compensation, with better work-life balance next but trailing far behind at 15%.

Baby boomers and Gen X workers were the most satisfied with their compensation, with 50% and 47%, respectively, reporting satisfaction. In contrast, only 24% of Gen Z employees and 25% of millennials were satisfied.

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