I stayed loyal and got no raise. Are job switchers pulling ahead?

Job switchers had 5.0 percent wage growth in August 2026, against 3.6 percent for workers who stayed. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta reported those Wage Growth Tracker figures, while the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System said 58% of employees received a raise or promotion in the past 12 months. But if your review ended with praise and no raise, you are in a common spot that still trails the majority employee outcome.

58% of employees reported a raise or promotion

The Board of Governors gave the annual-review benchmark in its 2024 Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking, published in May 2025. It reported that 31% of adults, or 58% of employees, received a raise or promotion.

That employee figure is the better comparison if you are thinking about a review at work. A no-raise meeting is not rare, but it is below the outcome reported by most employees over the past 12 months. The Fed said the result was similar to 2023.

Saying the ask is rarer than receiving one

The same Federal Reserve report separated getting a raise from asking for one. It said 12% of adults, or 21% of employees, asked for a raise or promotion. The asking group was much smaller than the receiving group.

That gap changes the pressure in the room. You may need to say what changed in your work, ask plainly and hold the pause after the ask. If your words are ready but your sound wobbles, voice modulation is one way to think about the pay conversation, not only presentations.

Job changers led stayers in August

The Atlanta Fed's Wage Growth Tracker gives the stay-versus-switch comparison. In August 2026, the tracker edged up to 4.1 percent from 3.8 percent the prior month. For workers not changing jobs, it held at 3.6 percent.

For workers changing jobs, the Atlanta Fed said the tracker increased to 5.0 percent in August from 4.4 percent in July. In that monthly federal wage measure, changers were ahead of stayers.

Why does one month help after a review?

The Atlanta Fed says the Wage Growth Tracker uses the monthly Current Population Survey. The CPS is administered by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the tracker focuses on wage and salary earnings in a worker's main job.

Respondents answer earnings questions in the fourth and last month they are surveyed. The Atlanta Fed says those interviews are spaced 12 months apart, which makes the tracker a year-over-year pay benchmark rather than a one-meeting reaction.

The earnings data come from one-fourth of the CPS total sample of approximately 60,000 households. That is broader than one department budget, one manager's wording or one employer's review calendar.

A stayer and a switcher face different next lines

Take a worker who stayed, heard positive feedback and got no raise. The outside benchmark says job stayers were at 3.6 percent wage growth in August 2026. The switching benchmark was 5.0 percent. The annual employee benchmark was 58% receiving a raise or promotion.

Those numbers do not decide whether you should leave. They do give you cleaner language for the next conversation: you can ask whether your employer sees you as on a no-change track, a delayed raise track or a promotion track.

Every benchmark for the pay conversation

Put the two Federal Reserve sources together and the review picture is clearer. The SHED report gives the raise-or-promotion benchmark over 12 months. The Atlanta Fed gives the August 2026 wage-growth comparison for stayers and job changers.

What this means for you

If you stayed loyal and got no raise, you are not alone. You are also not in the majority outcome the Fed reported for employees. Treat the review as unfinished business, not a final verdict on your value.

Before the next pay talk, prepare the sentences you need to say: what changed in your work, what raise or promotion you are asking for, and what timeline you want if the answer is no. Say those lines out loud before the meeting.