Canadian HR Reporter Weekly

2 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018 CANADIAN HR REPORTER WEEKLY ese days, a better job title doesn't always come with a bigger paycheque, according to a survey from staffing firm OfficeTeam. Nearly half of Canadian HR managers (47 per cent) said it's common for their company to offer employees promotions without salary increases — that's up 22 percentage points from a similar 2011 survey. Fourteen per cent said it's very common (compared to two per cent in 2011), 33 per cent said it's somewhat common, 20 per cent said it's not common at all, while 33 per cent said they don't offer promotions without raises — compared to 52 per cent in 2011. So, what's behind the change in strategy? Companies have become a lot more attuned to what it is that people are looking for in their career, what drives employees, said Koula Vasilopoulos, a district director at OfficeTeam. "As a result of that, companies have become a little more progressive and innovative in how they're handling different situations," she said. "When you look at the population in the workforce today, with the millennials, the gen y — their drivers and what's important to them are a little bit different than some of the other generations, and companies are really dialing into that and creating structures for individuals relative to their career growth and progression that isn't just tied to a pay raise." ere are a lot more millennials in the workforce these days, said Janet Salopek, president and senior consultant at Salopek and Associates in Calgary. "We know more about millennials today than what we did seven years ago, and what we know is they're not motivated primarily by money," she said. "What they're really looking for is the right match, so a job that really inspires them and is aligned with their values and allows them to have good work-life balance, to a large extent. So I think employers are paying attention to that and, as a result, when they have a promotion for an employee, they don't necessarily have to offer them more money if they can offer other them things." e trend is also seen in conservative salary increases over the last few years, said Rowan O'Grady, president of Hays Canada in Toronto. "Companies are feeling good about the economy and their own company's position about it right now, but not so much that it's converting into increases in salary," he said, citing continued uncertainty since the oil price crash and the uneven North American economy. "ere's pressure to respond to requests for a career progression amongst a team, but (employers are) not feeling like they're in a position where they can really put their money where their mouth is and commit financially because they might not be able to get out of that and they might regret it afterwards." In addition, a top reason for staff turnover is a lack of career progression being offered, so "it's not much of a surprise companies are having to offer promotions and changes in title," said O'Grady. Employees on board More than half (55 per cent) of professionals said they'd be willing to accept an advanced title that doesn't include a raise, found the survey of more than 300 HR managers and 1,000 workers. For many individuals, career growth and progression is their number one priority, said Vasilopoulos. "ey want to really feel like they are contributing in a meaningful way. Title is very important, and scope of Promoting staff without a pay raise? It's a growing trend in Canada Millennials appreciate opportunity, flexibility of new roles: Experts BY SARAH DOBSON Sign up for the Canadian HR Newswire today for free and enjoy great content from the publishers of Canadian HR Reporter. HR News at Your Fingertips THE LATEST NEWS THE BEST COMMENTARY DELIVERED WEEKLY FOR READING ON ANY DEVICE Visit www.hrreporter.com/ canadian-hr-newswire

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