U.S. Near Bottom of List of Global Salary Increases

Of the 13 countries taking part in WorkatWork ’s 2012-2013 Salary Budget Survey, only two countries, Spain and Japan, are ranked worse than the U.S. in projected 2013 salary increases, and all three trail far behind the group of top countries. Once again, India is far out in front with a projected salary increase of 10.7 percent next year, down only slightly from its 2011 increase of 11.2 percent. China is a close second with a projected 8.8 percent increase and Brazil is closely behind at 7.2 percent.

As for the bottom three countries, the United States has a projected salary increase of 3 percent, Spain is projected to have 2.9 percent average increases, and Japanese salaries can expect to rise 2.7 percent compared to each of the 2011 actual increases of 2.8 percent, 2.8 percent, and 2.6 percent, respectively. The remainder of the other countries, including Singapore, Australia, Canada, Germany, the U.K., France, and the Netherlands, each fall within a projected range of increase between 3 and 4.3 percent. Of course, the fact that U.S. salaries are projected to grow next year (even only marginally) can be considered good news but the fact that it continues to lag behind other regional powers suggests the road to economic recovery has only begun.

The annual WorldatWork survey gathered data from 4,299 employers (representing 17 million employees) representing 13 participating countries.