A fifth of corporations are giving employees further advantages reminiscent of procuring vouchers, free parking and journey subsidies to assist with the price of dwelling, based on a nationwide survey of UK companies, however most are nonetheless solely providing under inflation pay will increase.
In keeping with a ballot performed for the Monetary Occasions by the Chartered Administration Institute of greater than 1,000 managers at corporations and public sector organisations, just one in 10 mentioned they’d supplied a pay rise of greater than 5 per cent to their employees this yr. An identical quantity had supplied no primary pay enhance in any respect.
A 3rd had supplied wage will increase of 3-5 per cent, with an analogous quantity under that stage.
Inflation measured by the buyer worth index rose greater than 10 per cent yr on yr in September, squeezing many households as wage development stays comparatively low.
Corporations are coming underneath strain from their employees to extend wages to match the prices they’re dealing with at house as the worth of groceries and vitality soars forward of the winter.
Some employers are additionally providing one-off bonuses or price of dwelling funds.
PwC instructed employees on Thursday that these incomes £50,000 or much less a yr would obtain particular funds of between £1,000 and £1,500 unfold over the following 5 months to assist with the price of dwelling. The funds will go to about half of the agency’s 24,000 employees and anybody with a wage of £40,000 or much less will obtain the total quantity.
“Given the distinctive financial surroundings, further and focused assist feels the best factor to do, and we all know lots of our purchasers are doing the identical,” mentioned Kevin Ellis, PwC’s UK chair and senior accomplice.
PwC and different skilled companies teams have introduced greater than regular pay rises this yr with some corporations bringing ahead their normal pay rises. Deloitte instructed employees this month that they might select to obtain further money funds as an alternative of the agency’s normal contributions to their pensions.
Different corporations providing one-off funds of sometimes between £300 and £1,000 have included Amazon, Aviva, Grainger, John Lewis, housebuilders Barratt and Taylor Wimpey and banks reminiscent of Nationwide and Co-operative. Virgin Media O2 will give £1,400 to workers incomes lower than £35,000.
Nevertheless, the survey by the CMI confirmed this was nonetheless not the norm, with solely a tenth of these surveyed supplied one-off price of dwelling funds.
Twice that quantity mentioned they had been making an attempt to assist by way of giving perks reminiscent of procuring vouchers and journey subsidies. John Lewis, for instance, can be providing free meals to all employees till 6 January to assist with the price of dwelling. Aviva has scrapped automobile parking expenses for its employees.
“The squeeze on actual incomes is hitting thousands and thousands of households. Companies are feeling the squeeze too. We’re seeing many employers arising with progressive technique of softening the influence of the present state of affairs on their workers past primary pay reminiscent of money off on procuring and one-off in-year funds,” mentioned Anthony Painter, director of coverage, CMI.
“Total although, there’s a sense of muddling by way of what everybody will hope is the worst of the disaster. We’re nowhere close to out of the woods but.”
Giant organisations had been discovered to be extra more likely to provide primary pay awards than smaller rivals, the CMI discovered.
If pay awards had been supplied to some workers solely, it was extra seemingly within the personal sector than public, whereas extra remuneration and advantages had been additionally supplied extra usually within the personal sector than within the public sector.
