Dive Brief:
- The consumer packaged goods (CPG) employers plan to raise wages by an average 10%, according to this year's benefits and compensation report from recruiting firm ForceBrands. The 2019 Talent Market Report surveyed more than 500 hiring decision-makers in the beauty, wellness and personal care; beer; wine and spirits; food and non-alcoholic drinks; and cannabis industries.
- In other compensation-related findings, the top three determinates of a pay increase for CPG employers include job performance, company performance and skill sets. Employers also considered loyalty when deciding compensation for highly skilled workers, and the highest wage increases in the CPG sector were in the cannabis, beauty and beer industries, the report said.
- To appeal to millennials and Gen Zers, some employers surveyed by ForceBrands plan to offer flexible working options, offsite social meet-ups and onsite stress relief in 2020; the report found that 40% of employers offer flexible work schedules or work-at-home options currently, while 17% that do not currently offer such arrangements plan to offer them in 2020. In other benefits findings, 57% of employers currently provide maternity leave and 47% provide paternity leave, while 27% of companies offer unlimited paid time off (PTO). Fourteen percent of companies that do not offer unlimited PTO this year plan to do so next year, the report found.
Dive Insight:
In December, experts projected only a slight uptick in compensation for 2019 of 3.4% — up 0.2% from the previous six month's 3.2% estimate. Pew Research Center reported last year that real wages have been stagnant for years, undermining workers' ability to take full advantage of the more candidate-friendly labor market created by low unemployment. Wage hikes averaging 10% in CPG sectors are massive compared to the average increases employers plan to offer in 2019, but the question is whether employers in other industries will feel compelled to match these increases to stay competitive.
While employers might consider salary increases as a tool for retention and recruitment, certain employees might prefer better benefits to a pay increase. Flexible work schedules and remote work options are so in demand among workers that these perks could soon become default benefits. Millennial managers seem more willing to offer remote work to employees, believing the benefit caters to workers' needs and helps employers be more agile. Employers that were hesitant to offer flexible work arrangements in the past might consider drafting their own policies to cover these offerings after assessing the impact such changes might have on their organizations' bottom lines.
Correction: A previous version of this article did not specify the 17% and 14% of employers that plan to offer flexible work arrangements and unlimited paid time off, respectively, by 2020 do not currently offer these benefits to their workers. HR Dive has updated the brief to clarify this fact.