Not having inflation based pay raises is exactly equivalent to taking an automatic pay cut every year, which by your logic you only avoid if you "preformed well".
I've seen big sector contracts (e.g. 10k-100k employees) with it built in for a fixed number of years. Presumably the negotiators talked through some indicators originally.
I've also seen several 'eh, on average it's about 2%" type giving leading to a 2% written into your comp.
I've also seen places give it but not in your contract; based on execs opinion I guess on what real cost-of-living was doing. I suppose that's plausibly as accurate as picking an index.
The two concepts are so intertwined they are often rolled together.
FWIW I've seen contracts with separate clauses (e.g. something like everyone gets 2%, if you live in this city or this city you also get a 5% col adjustment). The non-inflation aspect of c-o-l changes is usual housing related and regional, I think (or based on remoteness)
The pay raise I expect is so much more than inflation. If I got less than 20% total comp increase at low numbers or less than $100k at high numbers, I’m assuming my performance is insufficient and I’m going to find a place to be more productive. At the point where we’re debating 2% increases, I don’t really care. I’m gone. You know it, I know it.
I’m not special. This is San Francisco as much as I know.
I've just never seen 'inflation pay raise' as a policy.