According to a Payscale study of 160,000 employees throughout the country, 37% of employees have asked for raises.  Of those who did, 70% received one.  39% got what they asked for, and 31% got less than what they requested.

Are there any perceived bias in these results?  The study showed that people of color are significantly less likely to receive a raise when they ask for one, relative to white men. The analysis controls for other factors that affect the likelihood of receiving a raise, like tenure and job level.  Women of color were 19% less likely to receive a raise than a white man, and men of color were 25% less likely.   According to Payscale, there is some evidence that white women are less likely to get a raise than a white male, but results were statistically insignificant.

Regions also play a role in getting a raise.  Those employees on the West Coast are more likely to get a raise than those in the Midwest.  In Michigan, it is 19% less likely to get a raise when asking for one than on the West Coast.  If the employee is in Missouri or Texas, the study found that the employee is 26% less likely to receive a raise when asking.  The best cities to get a raise when asking are Ogden, Utah followed by Honolulu, Fresno, San Francisco, and Long Island.  The worst cities are Gary, Baton Rouge, Lakeland-Winter Haven, Knoxville, and Stockton.

Employee hierarchy makes a difference too.  A VP level has a 142% chance of getting a raise, a director level has a 119% of getting a raise, and a manager level has a 42% chance of getting a raise.  Tenure also impacts receiving raises when asking.  Employees with 1 to 2 years’ experience are less likely to receive a pay increase than an employee with 5 or more years.

For those who do not ask for a raise, the leading reason that workers do not ask for raises is that they received a raise without asking (30%). The second most common reason is that workers did not think they have been in their positions long enough to merit a raise (29%).  Another 22% were uncomfortable asking for a raise.  Interestingly, 13% of men who did not ask for a raise stated that they did not want to be perceived negatively; compared to 11% for women.

The top three reasons employers gave for denying a pay hike were budgetary constraints, asking outside the salary increase cycle, and performance did not merit a raise.  Of workers who stated that their employer provided them a reason, only 23% believe their employers’ justification for denying a raise. Women were three percentage points less likely than men to believe the rationale.

In situations in which an employee is denied a raise and the manager explains poorly, employees may likely leave the organization.  This could impact not only productivity but also the employee brand.  HR should prep managers as to what to say when denying employee requests for raises.

Source: Payscale.com