I have been doing some digging on the average pay raise for the IT industry and I have not found too much information. I recently heard from someone inside my organization is that the maximum raise I could receive is 3%. That got me wondering, is that a decent raise for an average to above average performer at their work? Also my company does not give out decent bonuses so I just thought I would get some insight on this.
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1What country is this? – enderland Nov 06 '18 at 20:23
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2Related: How can I determine a reasonable salary to ask for? – Bernhard Barker Nov 06 '18 at 20:23
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@enderland United States – MountaindewKing Nov 06 '18 at 20:28
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Everywhere I've worked it has been dependent on your current salary relative to the average market value for your position. The real question is, is 3% enough to keep you happy? Only you can answer this. – Seth R Nov 06 '18 at 20:46
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Don't forget to consider inflation-- if consumer inflation runs ~2% in a given year, then your real raise from a 3% nominal increase is 1%. If your nominal raise was 0.5%, you're worse off than you were. – Upper_Case Nov 06 '18 at 21:13
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1@Seth R in some big corps the lowest level manager has a budget to distribute every year to his staff according to his evaluation of performance. I never really liked this process though - it's treating raises like candies and employees like kids – Diane M Nov 06 '18 at 21:22
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1Possible duplicate of How can I determine a reasonable salary to ask for? – Martin Tournoij Nov 06 '18 at 23:05
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I doubt there are statistics about raises of people in the IT industry because of how short span the developers seem to spend in the same company on average (average industry turnover seem 2 to 3 years based this quora thread). On such short spans, raises negotiation are less significant than initial salary negotiation.
Not only this, but raises can be negotiated based on initial salary, performance, gained experience, market value, responsibilities and other factors about how valuable you are to the company, which statistics cannot really take account of, which is why, if the average was x%, there would be a huge variation around this variable.
3% raise is low if you are in your early career and your initial salary isn't high for the market. Outside this situation, this looks enough to keep up with the market and make a decent salary (in your own definition) remain decent over the years.
Diane M
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1Yes 3% should keep pace with inflation + if you remain in the same role – Kilisi Nov 06 '18 at 22:30
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Of course, there is really no such thing as an "average" pay increase.
United States employment laws are bristling with laws that protect workers and which seek to place them on a level playing field with regard to salary, bonuses, and pay increases. The company is required to establish a formal merit-evaluation process (the "reviews" you're required to do at the end of every year), and the schedule of pay increases that are allowed in each case. COLA = Cost-of-Living Adjustments are similarly regulated.
Therefore, it is entirely possible that your company's policies may limit you to "3% a year," and "bonuses," if they are paid at all, are likely to be quite-restricted. But, please – "just ask!" Stop by the HR Department and ask them what their policies actually are. You have every right to know – and to object, if you feel wronged.
Mike Robinson
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