The unemployment rate in the United States remained steady in December 2024. However, according to two compensation studies released this month, currently employed workers may need to wait for some time before they can obtain the pay raises they are hoping for.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report on January 28 stating that in December of the previous year, the unemployment rate across the United States remained relatively stable. The national unemployment rate for that month was 4.1%, showing a 0.3 percentage point increase compared to the previous year. Among them, 6 states experienced an increase in unemployment rates, 2 states saw a decrease, while the remaining 42 states remained unchanged.
However, based on two surveys released in January, employees expecting significant pay raises this year may end up disappointed.
A recent survey by global recruitment agency Robert Walters Inc. revealed that nearly three-quarters (72%) of company managers are looking to give pay raises to employees, but 37% of them were informed by top management that budget constraints would prevent salary increases.
Sean Puddle, Managing Director of Robert Walters North America, mentioned in an interview with “The Epoch Times” that “we also found that 56% of surveyed employees expect a pay raise this year. However, the majority of surveyed companies expressed their intent to offer raises but are facing limitations due to budget constraints, causing an imbalance between supply and demand.”
At the same time, the “2025 Employee Compensation Trends Report” released by global professional services firm Willis Towers Watson (WTW) revealed that companies planning pay raises in 2025 will adopt more cautious increment rates.
The report pointed out that respondents from the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany seem to have found a new balance for pay raises at 4%, reflecting a balance between inflation, cost management, and competitive compensation demands.
Additionally, the report highlighted that nearly 40% of respondents are almost not concerned about talent attraction issues, indicating that many companies believe their talent pool is nearing saturation, or market dynamics might be slightly shifting the power back towards employers.
Regarding employee retention, WTW’s survey showed that companies are slowing down their aggressive recruitment post-pandemic, focusing more on optimizing existing talents.
76% of surveyed companies indicated plans to maintain current employee numbers, with only 14% anticipating an increase, while one-tenth of respondents predicted staff reductions.
However, Lori Wisper, Global Employee and Compensation Solutions Leader at WTW, stated in an interview with “The Epoch Times” that most companies are focusing on current employees, demonstrating that employees still hold a bargaining power to some extent in the market.
Looking back at 2021 and 2022, Wisper pointed out, “the ‘Great Resignation’ at that time suggested high job demand and a shortage of labor supply. Now, from the survey results, if labor supply is sufficient, filling the vacancies left by departing employees would not be so difficult.”
“Although the market dynamics may currently favor employers overall, there is still a long way to go for employers to truly take the lead.”
According to Robert Walters’ survey summary, 74% of surveyed professionals expressed plans to seek new employment in 2025.