Nearly two-thirds of the firms that froze salaries last year will begin offering their employees raises again in 2010, according to a new human resources report from Towers Perrin. While many companies cut out 401(k) matches last year, approximately one third of those companies plan to reinstate them this coming year.
Employees shouldn’t get too excited yet, however. Most of the companies that are reinstating these benefits are doing so slowly. 401(k) matches can be as high as 6% of the pay. Many companies, however, are going to see 401(k) matches that are half or less of what they used to be. Executive recruiters such as Dennis Carey hope that this will help with the recruiting process. FedEx, for instance, plans to give employees a match that is half of the earlier rate.
Other companies are actually moving to put employee achievements as the barometer for receiving salary increases, 401(k)s and more. Four out of every 10 employers say that in 2010 they plan to differentiate among employees during the salary review process. Some employees will end up getting raises and added benefits, based on performance, while others will not.
