How little companies react to inflation

Dusseldorf Prices are rising faster than they have in a long time: inflation in the euro zone recently climbed to a record high of 10.7 percent, and EU statisticians even calculated a figure of 11.6 percent for Germany. In order to cushion the rapid rise in energy and food prices, employers can now pay their employees a so-called inflation premium of up to 3,000 euros tax- and duty-free.

Wage increases or special payments as a reaction to inflation are currently still the exception. So far, companies have been reluctant to compensate for the increased prices. This is also confirmed by a new survey by the management consultancy Kienbaum, the results of which are available to the Handelsblatt in advance.

The survey shows how often and what extra payments companies have made due to persistently high inflation, who benefits most from this – and what employees expect from their employers in terms of salary.

Here are the five key takeaways from the study.