Six out of 10 workers who took a pay cut during the recession to avoid redundancy have still not had their full salaries reinstated, new research has revealed.
A survey of 1,000 people by recruitment consultants Badenoch & Clark found 14% had had their pay cut. Of these, more than half (60%) have still not had their pay increased back to original levels, despite the UK now being officially out of the recession.Employers that have been forced to cut staff pay include E.ON, Lancashire County Council, and Honda.
Coalition government ministers have also agreed to take a 5% pay cut and see their salaries frozen for the duration of parliament.
Lynne Hardman, managing director at Badenoch & Clark, said: “In reality, most employees had little choice but to accept a pay cut to keep their jobs. Now the UK is emerging out of recession, we could see employees being given more work for a lower remuneration package than pre-recession, which in turn could lead to many UK employees embarking on a search for new employment.
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“Our report clearly highlighted that, outside of financial rewards, flexible working and access to relevant training are integral parts of employment packages. Where budgets are tight, employers need to find other ways to incentivise staff to keep them engaged and to prevent them from looking for new opportunities.”
The survey found more than one-third (38%) of employees are being offered flexible working hours, while 16.7% have been offered additional annual leave.
