Magazine |
Pay remains frozen

Just 4% of employers are planning to offer their staff an above-inflation pay rise with 47% planning to freeze pay rises completely.

The survey of 243 organisations, that between them employ some half a million employees, also indicated that flexible working arrangements have increased significantly. Half the respondents to the CBI survey conducted by the recruitment firm Harvey Nash said they were encouraging more flexible working arrangements as a way of meeting the demands of the recession.

John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general, said: ‘The worst of the recession may be over but firms remain ultra cautious about increasing pay. Market conditions continue to be very tough and growth in 2010 will be feeble, so pay is going to be squeezed for some time to come.

‘As unemployment has risen, businesses and staff across the country have had to adapt to new economic realities. Pay cuts to preserve jobs are part of that reality. Given the alarming state of the public finances we must see similar pay restraint in the public sector.’

In particular businesses are encouraging their staff to work from home, with two thirds (66%) of firms making use of the practice, 20% higher than the 46% recorded just last year. The rate of change is emphasised by the fact that only 11% of employers made use of this flexibility in 2004.

The statutory right for individuals to request flexible working practices is a continuing success, according to the research. Nearly all requests by parents (93%) and carers (94%) are being granted by employers.

Meanwhile, graduates continue to face an increasingly competitive job market. Many firms have just completed their annual graduate recruitment round for 2009 and the same survey showed that 50% of firms reported they had trimmed graduate opportunities. However, a third (31%) continued to take their usual numbers and a fifth (19%) increased hiring.
20/11/09