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2026 SALARY
& TRENDS GUIDE
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DNA SALARY GUIDE 2026
WHAT EMPLOYERS THINK. WHAT TALENT FEELS.
Stalled pay rises, the progression gap, AI upskilling, and the quiet pull-back on flexibility are all changing hiring in 2026.
If you want to attract the best people and hold on to the ones you have, this report is the practical playbook.
Download it now to see what it means for your business.
45% of professionals received no pay rise in 2025, a dramatic reversal from the year before when 83% did.
Pay rises have stalled across the board, with the majority of those who did get one securing modest increases below 5%.
The double-digit raises that signaled a competitive market last year have all but vanished. But salary is still the number one reason people move. Businesses that haven't budgeted to protect their best people on pay this year will end up paying market rate, or more, to replace them.
79% of employees say their employer has no clear career plan for them, yet 63% of employers believe they have a documented framework in place.
This is the single biggest retention risk in the market right now. Either the frameworks aren't being communicated, or they're not being experienced as meaningful.
Employees value training and development above salary, and people who can't see a path don't stay. Businesses that get this right won't just retain their best people, they'll build a reputation that attracts them too. Those that don't will keep losing talent to competitors that do.
90% of professionals are now open to new opportunities, with only 1 in 10 committed to staying put.
Last year that figure was 84%. This year, it's climbed again and happiness is no longer a reliable signal.
68% of candidates say they're happy or very happy in their current role, yet the vast majority are still open to moving. Pay leads the list of triggers, but career progression, flexibility, and leadership quality all play a part. Retention isn't a single-lever problem, and the businesses that win at it are the ones that ask, regularly, what it would take to keep people.
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