A new study by HR and payroll software provider Ciphr has found that workers in the North West generated more pay rise related Google searches per person, between July and September this year, than anywhere else in the UK.
Ciphr analysed Google data for some of the most popular search queries in the UK around the subject of pay rises – such as ‘how to ask for a pay rise’, ‘salary increase calculator’, ‘wage rise 2022’, and ‘pay rise letter template’ (over 60 keywords in all) – to discover which UK towns and cities average the most searches per person.
While Walsall in the West Midlands topped the list for most searches (102 per 10,000 people), towns and cities in the North West dominated the results – comprising half of the top 10 towns and cities and 36 per cent of the top 25. When looking at the top 50 towns and cities with the most searches for terms related to pay rises, just over a quarter of the list are in the North West – suggesting perhaps that workers in this region, above all others, may be less satisfied with their pay.
Notably, 90 per cent of the top 10 towns and cities (and nearly three-quarters of the top 25) have lower-than-average full-time salaries.
The residents of Walsall, for example, earn an average of £571.10 a week, according to the latest (2022) annual earnings data available from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This is well below the UK’s national average of £640 a week for full-time workers, while the UK’s average hourly rate is £16.37.
Looking at the data for the UK as a whole, search interest in pay rises almost doubled this year, as soaring inflation caused many workers’ real incomes to fall. There were 422,290 searches for pay rise related terms between October 2021 and September 2022, an increase of 97 per cent on the previous 12 months, when there were 214,420 searches.
Monthly ‘pay rise’ searches have also been dramatically higher – up 67 per cent in September 2022, compared to September 2021 (31,890 vs 19,070).
Commenting on the results, Claire Williams, chief people officer at Ciphr, said: “It’s not surprising to see these recent results and I’m sure most employers are very aware that it is an incredibly unnerving time for employees across the country.
“People are understandably concerned about the impact of the rising cost of living, and, for many, that doesn’t only mean a reduction in their disposable income, but also an impact on their ability to continue to pay the bills. This can cause a huge amount of stress and anxiety, which can in turn impact health and wellbeing.”
Williams adds: “Employers do have a tricky balancing act to achieve. They will be acutely aware of the impact the increasing cost of living is having on their employees and may already be seeing staff turnover increase as employees seek work elsewhere for more money. Organisations are also seeing their costs increase, and possibly a downturn in revenue as customers become more cautious, so they will also be considering how best to protect their organisations’ financial health and, importantly, their employees’ jobs.
“There are, however, lots of steps that employers can take to help ease the financial impact on their employees, especially when salary increases to match record inflation aren’t a viable option,” says Williams. “Start by fully exploring all the features of your existing employee benefits, as lots of these include partner products such as discount shopping sites and cash back allowances. It’s also worth investigating benefits that have a low-cost impact to employers but that can help employees spread costs through loans for technology purchases, travel tickets, bikes, and even cars. Engage with your benefits providers to see if they can offer financial wellbeing seminars to your employees and do some research to share helpful tips and information from the wealth of online resources that are available.”
Ciphr analysed thousands of online search queries about pay rises using KWFinder and Semrush in October 2022. The full results of the study are available at https://www.ciphr.com/cost-of-living-crisis-statistics/#pay-rises.
