I'm two years into a job at a local warehouse specializing in making cabinets. We'll call this company MasterBrand…because that's its name. It's an affiliate under the Fortune Brands umbrella of companies along with several other home improvement retailers (Moen Faucets, etc.). CEO made $9.6 M last year, whole nine yards. Suffice it to say, the company operates in tens/hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Here's a summary of today's events:
Great news, everyone. It's that time of year again. Because of your continued efforts of putting in 46-54 hours a week all year long, you're all getting raises as a token of appreciation.
Now, we know some of you weren't satisfied with last year's 1.4% raise, despite it being the best we could do; but you'll be happy to know that we hear you and this year, you're all getting a hefty 3.5% raise. You've earned it.
silence, followed by hushed whispers
For reference, just last week, the Social Security Administration pegged their 2023 Cost-Of-Living Adjustment at 8.7%. This realistically puts general inflation over 10%.
And the best these assholes can do is 3.5%? A whole $0.64 more per hour. Doesn't even cover half of the increase in my rent alone this coming January.
If it doesn't keep up with surpass inflation, it's not a raise, it's a pay cut disguised in a manner meant to guilt you into accepting it.