Only 19% of Employers Give Raises Based on Tenure

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Does your company employ a fair system for raises? Read on to see how many companies don’t. 

It’s nice to find a job that offers you a chance to do something you love or find interesting while bringing home a paycheck that makes it easy to cover your mortgage, car payments, and various expenses. But you may reach a point where you’re hoping to see your pay go up, whether because you haven’t gotten a raise in a while or your bills are increasing due to inflation.

There are different arguments you can make in the course of fighting for a raise. You could point to your skills, your on-the-job wins, or the fact that you’ve been with your company for a long time. But the latter argument — tenure — may not work as well as you’d think.

Years of service may not translate to a raise

In a recent Payscale survey, 72% of employers said that performance is a factor considered when giving out pay raises. By contrast, only 19% said they consider tenure when making those decisions.

Now, on the one hand, that sort of makes sense. Being at a job for a long time doesn’t automatically make you good at it. Perhaps you’ve been with your company for 20 years and have taken the attitude that you’ll simply do the bare minimum needed to collect your paycheck.

On the other hand, it’s more than conceivable that you’ve not only been with your company for a long time, but have consistently gone above and beyond since the moment you became an employee. Not only that, but you may have, through the years, rejected other job offers from outside firms as a means of showing your dedication to your current employer. That’s something that should be rewarded. And if you’re not being rewarded financially, you may want to take your skills elsewhere.

It’s okay to chase that higher paycheck

There’s something to be said for being settled at a company, having a manageable routine, and not wanting to make a major change. But if your efforts to snag a raise have been futile, then it may be time to search for a job at a new company. Doing so could mean scoring a much higher salary — and getting an opportunity to meet your most important goals, like building a retirement nest egg or putting your kids through college.

What’s more, if you’ve been with the same company for a long time, that could work to your advantage when seeking out a new job elsewhere. After all, companies don’t like to make investments in new employees only to have them jump ship a year or two later. If you have a history of staying put, it may be easier to sell a new employer on the fact that you’re looking to build a long-term relationship.

All told, it’s a little surprising to see that more companies don’t consider tenure when making decisions about pay increases. But knowing that might help inform your next career move — and help you approach the process of getting higher pay more strategically.

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