Apple is significantly raising its starting pay for hourly employees, some 45% over 2018 levels.
Like many companies, Apple is working to retain its workforce and attract new talent amid a market that is being squeezed by rising costs, soaring inflation, and increased competition among rivals. In response, according to The Wall Street Journal, via Ars Technica, the company is raising the starting pay of hourly employees to $22, although it may be even higher in some markets.
In addition, the company said it would move up some annual reviews by as much as several months in an effort to open the door for existing employees to get pay increases faster.
“Supporting and retaining the best team members in the world enables us to deliver the best, most innovative, products and services for our customers,” a spokesperson told WSJ. “This year as part of our annual performance review process, we’re increasing our overall compensation budget.”
Read more: Apple Delays Increased In-Person Work Indefinitely
The move is not surprising, given the overall state of the market. Microsoft recently doubled its salary budget, following similar moves by Amazon.
To complicate matters even further, Apple has been struggling more than some of its tech rivals with getting employees back to the office. After a couple of years of groundbreaking product releases and record-breaking quarters, many employees see no need to be forced back to the office an arbitrary number of days. Apple’s employees have already penned numerous letters in protest and some have quit, with the company’s AI chief being the most high-profile loss over its back-to-office policies.
One thing is clear: Apple is pulling out the stops to keep employees happy, although it remains to be seen if it will pull out the stop most people want, and let employees continue to work remotely.
