2014 raises to set post-recession bar, biggest since ’08

Pay-raise budgets at U.S. employers have picked up from all-time lows four years ago, going from a mean of 2.2% in 2009 to 2.9% in 2013, according to the “WorldatWork 2013-2014 Salary Budget Survey.” While employers plan to loosen the purse strings next year, spending on pay raises will be far from lavish.