Korn Ferry Hay Group Study Shows Mixed Salary Growth Across the Globe

A new analysis by the Hay Group division of Korn Ferry (NYSE:KFY) shows mixed salary recovery figures across the world, eight years after the fall of Lehman Brothers signaled the beginning of one of the worst global recessions in history.

According to the study, the United States suffered one of the worst salary recoveries among developed nations in what is known as the “G20,” which denotes the world’s top economies.

Adjusted for inflation, salaries in the United States decreased 3.1 percent on average since September 2008 – despite a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 10.2 percent. Canada’s salary recovery is the best among developed nations, with a 7.2 percent salary growth on average, with a GDP gain of 11.2 percent.

Other developed nations experienced flat to modest salary growth, with Australia at 5.9 percent, France at 5.2 percent, Germany at 5 percent, Italy at 2.4 percent and the U.K. down .1 percent.

Emerging markets saw the best and the worst salary growth. China, Indonesia and Mexico had the largest salary growth at 10.6 percent, 9.3 percent and 8.9 percent respectively; and Turkey, Argentina, Russia and Brazil had the worst at -34.4 percent, -18.6 percent, -17.1 percent and -15.3 percent respectively. Growth in all developed nations landed in the middle.

“While overall, global economists point to this recovery as one of the worst in history, there are political, economic and social reasons for the disparate salary fluctuations in different countries,” said Benjamin Frost, Korn Ferry Hay Group Global Product Manager – Pay. “In the countries that are seeing tremendous salary growth, the issue is supply and demand. With countries like China seeing a whopping 75.9 percent GDP growth since the beginning of the recession, universities and corporations simply can’t train people fast enough. This leaves an acute talent shortage and points to the reason skilled employees are seeing steep pay increases.”

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