Fewer employees are expecting pay raises than reported in the prior two quarters and more employees say they are willing to take on additional responsibilities, work longer hours, take pay cuts and unpaid leave in order to keep their job, according to the Q2 Glassdoor.com Employment Confidence Survey of 1,278 employed adults conducted on its behalf by Harris Interactive.
The quarterly survey measures four key indicators of employee confidence in the areas of job security, salary expectations, re-hire probability and company outlook. In addition, the survey tracks the concessions employees are willing to take to keep their jobs. Highlights are below:
More than half (54%) of employees report their company has made changes to the number of staff, organizational structure, compensation and benefits, or other perks over the past six months. Of those reporting these changes, one of the most common scenarios was layoffs or communicating plans to lay off employees (58%), which is consistent with the first quarter (57%). However, more employees this quarter report their companies initiated other actions, including bonus reductions (21%), furloughs, unpaid leave or mandatory vacations (18%), job restructuring (16%), and pay cuts (15%) than last quarter.
While slightly fewer employees (24%) say they are concerned they could be a victim of a layoff in the next six months than seen in Q1 (26%), 41% are concerned their employer will layoff employees other then themselves in the second half of 2009, down slightly from Q1 2009 (44%). Employees who work for companies that have already gone through layoffs in the past six months have more concerns: Of these, just over 3 in 4 (78%) think their company could let other employees go in the next six months and 39% are concerned they will be laid off.
Employees’ company outlook remains unchanged from the first quarter. Nearly half (47%) expect the company outlook to stay the same, 39% expect the outlook to get better and just 14% expect the outlook to get worse in the next six months. Interestingly, more mature employees including those who are self employed (ages 55+) have stronger opinions about whether company outlook will shift up or down. Of these adults, 45% expect their company outlook to get better and 21% expect it to get worse, while 34% expect performance to stay the same.
Reality may be setting in as 50% of employees report they do not expect a pay raise or cost of living increase in the next 12 months, up from 40% in the fourth quarter of 2008, yet nearly one-third (32%) are expecting a pay raise or cost of living increase within the next year. It seems where you live may play into pay expectations. Employees in the west (21%) exhibit the least confidence in pay raises compared to those in other parts of the country: northeast (38%); midwest (33%); and south (36%)
If they were to lose their job, almost two-fifths (39%) of employees (including those self-employed) believe they could find one matched to their experience and compensation level in the next six months, while 31% say it’s unlikely and 28% are uncertain. Mature employees (55+), including those self employed, think it is unlikely (41%) versus likely (31%) while the inverse is true for younger employees (18-34) (including those self employed). Nearly half (48%) of those 18-34 say it is likely they would find a job, while just a quarter (24%) say it’s unlikely. For those who are not employed but currently looking for work, optimism is lower. Of these, one in four (25%) think it is likely and 37% think it unlikely they will find a job matched to their experience and compensation in the next six months.
In general, employees report more willingness to make concessions in the second quarter than in prior quarters if it would help them keep their job. The most popular is taking on more projects and responsibility (71%) and willingness to work more hours (64%), but 42% say they are willing to take a cut in salary or wages, up from 30% in the fourth quarter of 2008. Although mature employees (55+) are less optimistic about finding a job if they were let go (44%), they are also less willing to take on more work (61%) or increase hours worked (56%), accept reduction in health and/or dental benefits (22%) and forfeit vacation or paid leave or a sabbatical (26%). Despite having lower compensation on average, younger employees (18-34) are most willing to make concessions, particularly in the areas of more work (76%), longer hours (71%) and giving up vacation or other paid leave (38%).
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