Job Market Reality Check: Switchers Now See Just 5% Hikes vs. 30% Boom Days
The golden age of job-hopping is over—employers now hold the cards.
Salary surge stalls
Remember when switching jobs meant automatic 30% bumps? Those days are gone. Today's movers scrape just 5% increases as companies tighten belts—and workers lose leverage.
Market correction or power grab?
HR departments cite 'economic headwinds' while quietly enjoying the shift. 'We're seeing more realistic compensation expectations,' gloats one Fortune 500 hiring manager—translation: cheaper hires.
The new calculus
With hiring freezes spreading like corporate memos, employees face a brutal choice: settle for scraps or risk being stuck. Meanwhile, C-suites still collect record bonuses—because austerity never trickles up.
AI Talent Bucks the Trend, Commands a Bigger Salary Hike For Switching

The technology industry, especially those in the AI sector, has bucked the trend in job switching. Engineering talent in artificial intelligence commands a 35% to 56% salary hike during job switching. Tech firms are willing to shell out more to attract top talent and build their ecosystem. It is now among the highest-paying jobs in the technological sector.
Almost all multinational corporations have invested billions in building their AI centers. Job switching and expecting a bigger salary hike are possible now only in this sector. Apart from AI, jobs in the medical field, especially nurses, are also able to get bigger salaries for switching.