Most people don't get COLA or raises due to inflation. People just switch job. A lot of people don't understand how inflation make them poorer over time by electing to stay at a job that pays them the same wage year after year.

Anonymous wrote:I get at least 5% each year. This year I’ve received multiple raises with one more to come in October.

Wow..that's amazing. Your company must be doing well and they must be generous as well.

I get at least 5% each year. This year I’ve received multiple raises with one more to come in October.

No. We used to but that stopped about 10 years ago. We used to get a performance-based increase and a COLA. Now we kind of get the COLA in the form of a bonus; though it's performance-based the bar is pretty low. It means that they don't have to keep upping retirement contributions and salaries don't grow as quickly.

We usually (but not always) get a cost of living adjustment, but it is rarely tied to inflation so it doesn’t keep up.

My wife’s does but I have never had a job that did. She also gets merit raises and bonuses.

I’ve seen union contracts that provide for COL raises annually and then a raise at a later part of the year.

Anonymous wrote:They call it a performance raise but its really a COLA because everyone gets the same raise. It is usually about 3-4% each year. Sometimes they throw promotions around like a manager becomes a senior manager but is still doing the same job.

Same. This year and last year were 3.5%.

I typically get a measly 1-2% per year. Maybe 4% in a good year a few years back.

No. I didn't get paid for training; they didn't meet minimum wage; didn't pay the $2.77 an hour required for 2+ years. There were no breaks in 12-hours shift; we had to pay for any walk-outs. Some credit card tips were missing, had to share money with an extra person when cousin visited and needed money. We bought out own supplies, and paid $35 for every bounced check among other things.
I think I counted 15 different ways I lost money at my jobs. Increase would have come when the wage went from $2.13 to $2.77 an hour plus tips, but since the employer didn't even pay that for years, I didn't notice an pay going up.
They also didn't meet the minimum required if tips were not enough. When I did file taxes, my refund was smaller or non-existent, because I missed out of non-refundable credits.
I had no idea how to do taxes without a W-4.
My SS also has $0 for 4 years calculated into payment, so it will follow me forever or I have to work 4 years longer.
This was actually done by 4-5 different employers in DC. So, it felt like a norm. All I could do is keep working as being homeless was my other option. I had been homeless before.
The pay did go up, but only when I moved to an upscale neighborhood restaurant and got a paycheck every week.
I did make several efforts to change job, but they were just as bad if not worse. Two jobs cost me more to go to work than to stay home. At some point minim wage job or below starts to seem normal. The only reason I even made it was because I was too busy working to spend money and government paid for health and some food.
Why would government ever allow those establishments exist? They got their taxes.
Not sure how much you need to make, OP, but my last restaurant pays $30-$40 an hour now that I'm retired. Seems better than ride-share.

They call it a performance raise but its really a COLA because everyone gets the same raise. It is usually about 3-4% each year. Sometimes they throw promotions around like a manager becomes a senior manager but is still doing the same job.

No.

Sort of. We get yearly raises, based on performance and also company performance. It’s usually a min of 2% so I guess that keeps up (ish) with inflation? Not great though.

Mine does not but I am in my 50s and too old to start over somewhere else so I stay.

I get a raise for performance, but it is never really more than inflation, which means I'm not really getting a pay increase for my performance after all. And some years, yes, my raise isn't as much as inflation and I am getting poorer and poorer like you.

Does your employer adjust your salary yearly to account for inflation? Mine doesn't and I just realized I'm getting poorer and poorer working here. I supplement my income doing ride share on weekends, but I think I should just leave the stability of this job for another job with higher pay.