US wage growth and inflation comparison
US inflation and wage growth rates
US inflation in August
US wage inflation in July
In contrast, in the US - with inflation at 3.7% in August and wage inflation at 4.8% in July - workers are firmly in real-terms wage growth.
US inflation (to Aug 2023) and wage growth rates (to July 2023)
High inflation compounds the importance of financial reward. Research by YouGov in the U.K., in mid-December 2022, evidenced that – with 74% of adults worried about their financial situation due to the rising cost of living – the key motivator for finding a new job in 2023 was cited (by 57% of survey respondents) as being to achieve a higher wage.
Moreover, the research showed how candidate expectations were shifting and people were becoming more selective in the roles they consider: 62% of UK respondents were more likely to ignore a job ad that does not disclose details of salary / earnings.
A similar survey in the U.S., by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in March 2023, found that 74% of individuals were less interested in applying for jobs where pay details were not included in the job ad.
Despite workers clearly wanting more pay transparency, employers in the UK appear to be reducing the levels of visibility. Data from Adzuna shows that the proportion of ads containing wage information in April 2023 (52%) was markedly lower than a year earlier (61%) – and was the lowest level of salary disclosure since they started collecting data in April 2016. These declining levels of salary transparency, coupled with falling demand, suggest that employers may be seeking to contain wage budgets at a time when they are under broader cost pressures.
Ads with wage information in April 2022
Ads with wage information in April 2023
Ads with wage information February 2020
Ads with wage information August 2023
Following an equality-driven legislative mandate in a number of key U.S states (including California and New York) for job ads to contain a pay rate range, the trend has gone the opposite way. The proportion of ads with pay transparency has grown significantly, reaching half (51%) of all ads on Indeed in August 2023 – more than a tripling on the proportion recorded in February 2020 (18%).