Maybe it's because money doesn't buy as much as it did 4 years ago. Since most employees have limited control over their mostly-static salaries, they've scaled down output accordingly.
It's 100% real in my experience. I delivered twice the goal my manager set and got a 1% raise. Since then I've scaled my effort way back. Work is a necessity, not a priority.
> Maybe it's because money doesn't buy as much as it did 4 years ago. Since most employees have limited control over their mostly-static salaries, they've scaled down output accordingly.
Yes, and most people have longed faced that without the pay of this quote: "Don’t want 18 hr days at Goldman or 10 years of medical school, but want the pay? Come work 8 at <tech co> and make the same pay without the intern and first years hazing by an alcoholic 45 y/o MD who hates their spouse and never goes home."
That's what my colleague is telling his boss.
He doesn't even want a raise. He just wants income adjustment to keep the same buying power he had 4 years ago.
It's easy to dismiss this as just a smart ass comment, but it's 100% real for me. My employer pretends to treat me fairly and I pretend to work hard.