BIGGER PAYCHECKS! CALIFORNIA'S HOT JOB MARKET FUELS BETTER RAISES.Byline: Chris Sieroty Staff Writer The prospect for California's job market appears so good for next year that workers can expect to receive their highest pay raises since 1993, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a survey released Monday. The survey also shows that one in three companies expects to hire additional workers. About one-third of the 556 companies surveyed said they will increase their budgets for salaries. Among the companies increasing their budgets, the average merit increase next year will be 4.5 percent - the largest average percentage climb since 1993, when salaries jumped 4.6 percent. Increases in other compensation, including cost-of-living raises, bonuses and lump-sum payments, raise the total compensation to 4.8 percent in 2000, according to the ``Year 2000 Budget Survey'' by the Employers Group The Employers Group is a nonprofit association of employers based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1893 as the Merchants Association, the organization's initial goal was to secure the open shop in all workplaces in the city. , one of the nation's oldest and largest human resources The fancy word for "people." The human resources department within an organization, years ago known as the "personnel department," manages the administrative aspects of the employees. organizations. ``This survey will get Alan Greenspan's attention, because the wages generated by the tight labor market labor market A place where labor is exchanged for wages; an LM is defined by geography, education and technical expertise, occupation, licensure or certification requirements, and job experience are definitely outpacing the California Consumer Price Index, which is running around 2.5 percent,'' said Jack Kyser, chief economist The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of responsibility encompassing the of the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County Economic Development Corp. It will get the Federal Reserve chairman's attention ``because California is such a large part of the national economy. . . . The Fed might take it as a sign of inflation,'' he said. In the five-county Los Angeles region, the survey found that hourly workers could expect on average a 4.72 percent raise. Clerical and technical workers would average a 4.75 percent raise, with salaried employees receiving a 4.96 percent raise. Executives can expect to receive the largest raise next year, with an average of 5.47 percent. The L.A. region encompasses Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside and San Bernardino San Bernardino, city, United States San Bernardino (săn bûr'nədē`nō), city (1990 pop. 164,164), seat of San Bernardino co., S Calif., at the foot of the San Bernardino Mts.; inc. 1854. counties. Staffing levels are also on the rise, with 33 percent of companies in California expecting to increase their staff next year, according to the survey. Fifty-five percent of companies expect their staffing levels to remain the same, while 7.5 percent of companies surveyed indicated they would lay off employees. The remaining companies are uncertain. For example, in the Los Angeles region 50 percent of the companies surveyed indicated they would maintain the same level of hourly employees, according to Juan P. Garcia, research director with Los Angeles-based Employers Group. The survey found that employee turnover was higher in Northern California Northern California, sometimes referred to as NorCal, is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The region contains the San Francisco Bay Area, the state capital, Sacramento; as well as the substantial natural beauty of the redwood forests, the northern than in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . ``As one might expect, turnover for the past 12 months was higher in Northern California because of the difficulty to recruit and retain people in the information technology sector,'' Garcia said in a statement. In a 12-month period ending in September, Northern California firms experienced a 16.9 percent turnover rate compared with a 13.9 percent rate in San Diego and 10.9 percent in the Los Angeles-Orange County-Inland Empire region. This survey ``is semi-good news for California because it points out we are a leader in high-tech,'' said Kyser, ``but also says we are going to have to look closely at how we can keep up with the demand for high-tech workers.'' CAPTION(S): chart Chart: Pay day |
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