When loyalty is rewarded: Top earners who stay in their jobs get much larger pay increases than those who switch
A recent Bank of America study reveals that top earners who remain with their employers receive significantly larger pay increases compared to those who switch jobs. While job-hopping has slowed, younger generations like Gen Z are still benefiting from switching, experiencing higher wage growth than their counterparts who stay. However, older generations, such as Gen X and Baby Boomers, have seen stagnant or declining wages when switching jobs.
- ▪The top 5% of earners who stayed with their employers received year-over-year pay hikes approaching double digits.
- ▪About half of those who stayed in their job and 44% of those who switched jobs saw no pay increase in Q1 2026.
- ▪Gen Z job-hoppers' earnings growth rate was four times that of stayers, while millennials' wage growth was double compared to stayers.
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To stay or to go? That’s the perennial question for workers trying to maximize their pay in a “peanut-butter” raise economy. But in the era of job-hopping and freelancing, freedom can come with a cost. Recommended Video For higher earners, loyalty is rewarded. The top 5% of earners who stayed with their employers received year-over-year pay hikes approaching double digits, while peers who switched jobs only saw a low-single-digit bump, according to a Bank of America study using internal deposit data. All other workers—including lower-, middle-, and higher-earners excluding the top 5%—all got a higher after-tax wage increase if they switched. Bank of America Institute That’s if you get a raise at all.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Fortune.
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