Pay awards steady at 2% in June 2017 – XpertHR

Pay awards for the three months to the end of June 2017 stood at a median 2%, according to the latest analysis from XpertHR. There are also ‘no obvious signs’ that XpertHR’s headline measure of settlement levels is about to ‘shift upwards in pursuit of rising inflation’, with almost 30% of all awards at 2%.

Based on a sample of 290 pay awards from across the economy effective between 1 April and 30 June 2017 (covering the pay awards for almost 3.5 million employees):

• half of all pay awards are worth between 1.5% and 2.5%
• 2% is the most common pay award, given to 29% of employee groups
• a 2% pay award was recorded in the services, and manufacturing and production sectors
• four pay awards in 10 (41.2%) are higher than employees received a year ago, and only one quarter (25.1%) are lower
• the number of pay reviews resulting in a pay freeze remains low, at just 5.7%.

XpertHR pay and benefits editor, Sheila Attwood, said:

‘Despite elevated inflation levels and low unemployment, organisations’ ability to pay combined with economic uncertainty are continuing to keep pay increases in check.’

XpertHRis the ‘UK's most comprehensive online source of legal compliance, good practice and benchmarking information made available to HR professionals as a single subscription service’: www.xperthr.co.uk