Richmond-area salary increases expected to hold steady at about 3 percent

Published June 18, 2014 by Robert Powell, III

                        
Median salary increases offered by Richmond-area employers are expected to be 3 percent this year, the same as last year, according to a recent survey.

The 2014 Greater Richmond Compensation Survey, conducted by Titan Group, a Richmond-based human resources consulting firm, gathered information from 119 organizations in the Greater Richmond area.

The resulting data cover 184 different job classifications, providing information on base compensation.

More than half the companies surveyed expect to increase their permanent full-time workforces.

“The survey results are consistent with the past two years where salary increase budgets have held steady around 3 percent,” Lee Weisiger, one of the Titan Group’s founding partners, said in a statement.  “While some sectors are growing, the growth has not been so robust that employers are inclined to add to their operating costs by substantially increasing salaries.  Despite increased demand for high-skilled and hard-to-find talent, employers don’t see a pressing need to raise salaries to retain talent.  But, the survey respondents indicated that identifying, rewarding, and retaining top performers is a key business issue. With salary increases holding steady, more employers are using bonuses and incentive plans to reward top performers. “

The survey results on median pay ranged from $20,131 for a dishwasher to $216,917 for a chief executive officer. 

The median salary for other C-level (executive suite) jobs were chief financial officer ($163,151) and chief operating officer ($167,280). 

The median salaries of some other jobs were:
• Accountant III (minimum of four years experience) – $63,413
• Controller – $101,750
• Claims  Adjuster-$53,000
• Fundraiser/development officer-$60,000
• Social/case worker – $50,000
• Cook – $27,903
• Administrative assistant II- $40,250
• Office manager – $50,000
• Human resources manager – $82,720
• Recruiter – $53,924
• Training specialist – $48,308
• Warehouse worker – $31,179
• Customer service manager – $62,000
• Communications director – $85,000
• Marketing manager – $81,403
• Automotive mechanic – $41,404
• Electrician (journeyman) – $50,430
• Plant manager – $107,187
• Network administrator – $68,887
• Web designer- $55,682

In addition to information about salaries and bonuses, the survey asked about benefits practices. More than 90 percent of the respondents articipants said the Affordable Care Act has not led them to reduce workforce hours.

More than half (55 percent) of employers reported no impact on healthcare costs from the ACA, but 44 percent did see increases in health benefit costs due to the Affordable Care Act.