The pandemic has stood in the way of employees seeking pay raises and promotions, studies suggest, as lockdowns have knocked personal confidence and rocked company budgets.

A survey shared with City A.M. by Love Energy Savings, which polled 1312 UK employees, found that one in three people are less comfortable asking for a pay increase post-pandemic, compared to just 24 per cent who said they feel more comfortable.

Women a part of Generation X, those aged 45 to 54, are the least confident when it comes to asking for a pay rise, Love Energy Savings’ study found.

Meanwhile, 75 per cent of Londoners thought that being in the office would increase their likelihood of promotion, according to e-bike subscription service DASH Rides.

Knocked confidence

More than half of people surveyed no longer feel the same about asking for a pay rise as they did pre-pandemic, Love Energy Savings found.

Looking at the job market throughout the pandemic, the study suggested that employees feel luckier to have a job, even if they would like more perks.

However, the younger generation were less struck by the pandemic-induced knock to confidence, as 29 per cent said they felt ‘significantly more’ comfortable asking for a pay boost than they did prior to the pandemic.

Human resources consultant and author of ‘It’s About You Too’, Lorri Rassas, said that due to the uncertainty both workers and company’s face during Covid-19, “it makes sense that employees are laying low and treading carefully before making any demands.”

Rocked budgets

Most employees in the capital feel that their employee benefits are dated and could use a revamp and wish that Covid could trigger some investment into work perks – if the pandemic had not hit budgets so hard.

DASH Rides’ research, which surveyed 2,013 full-time city workers, found that 83 per cent of Londoners would like their employer to use Covid as a catalyst to revamp their employee benefits and perks, such as office drinks, socials, travel and cycle to work schemes.

While 71 per cent said they feel the benefits their company offers are outdated.

“Our data clearly shows that the pandemic hasn’t changed the fact that Londoners love being in London,” DASH Rides CEO, Jamie Milroy, said.

“What is interesting is that with this move back toward the city also comes changing employee expectations. Workers care more about the ways in which their employers give back both to themselves and to the wider world.”

Read the original article on CityAM

‍