Almost three-quarters of Irish companies are planning to award pay rises next year. The Ibec Pay Survey has found that 71% of companies plan to increase basic pay in 2017, with the median pay increase set to be 2%. Ibec stated that a “significant number of companies still cannot afford pay rises” but added that, due to low inflation, “the economy as a whole is going through a period of strong real wage growth. You can view the results in the latest Ibec HR Update Survey here.