Yeah. Chose feed my kids over LinkedIn profile like an idiot.
With 2% annual inflation bumps, if the company hit their profit goals only, I would have got back to the original pay in no time anyway.
Discussion
So I did the math, which I don't recall ever doing before. Based on the rough numbers I remember, 36 years to get back to the same salary as before, assuming they didn't ever skip raises. They definitely had a habit of finding excuses to not give raises.
We normally strive for 3% inflation bumps, but I think those are going to erode too quickly going forward. We’re probably looking at 4-5 to maintain. (Really 7-8, but asking that is probably unrealistic until it’s persistent.)
I can't say in my life I've ever gotten an inflation bump that even beat CPI never mind less doctored numbers. You gotta get those promotions and big wins or go under.
Also been frustrating watching front line service job wages go up at a meaningful rate while my professional wife and I get less than inflation annual bumps but our companies demand more of us and treat us worse.
Quiet quitting is morally justified for many.