More than money: What’s driving increased employee satisfaction with pay?

Employees in the Madison area were more positive about pay than they were a year ago, according to the latest Top Workplaces survey data. But if you think that means everyone got a raise (or if you didn’t and you are now experiencing FOMO), think again. More than money is driving perception around pay.

Dollars matter, and certainly some in the local workforce did get a raise. But what’s driving the increase in positivity around compensation is likely multiple factors, according to Bob Helbig, media partnerships director for Energage, which conducts annual Top Workplaces surveys.

By the numbers

Local employees were asked to rate their agreement (or disagreement) with the statement: “My pay is fair for the work I do.” For the 2026 Top Workplaces surveys, just over 69% of Madison area employees were positive about pay, compared with about 65.5% of those who responded to 2025 Top Workplaces surveys.

Nationally, fewer employees were positive about pay at about 64%, but that was still up 6.2 percentage points from about 58% the previous year, according to Top Workplaces survey data.

To be sure, Madison area employees are more positive generally (and compared with national survey results) about a variety of other aspects of their work experience, such as values and inclusion. Nearly 87.5% of Madison area employees expressed at least some agreement with the statement: “This company operates by strong values” and 84% agreed that “I feel included at this company.”

But the largest year-over-year increase for positivity scores — more than 3.6 percentage points — came in the category of pay. So, while not everyone is happy about their compensation, the trend is moving in the upward direction.

Survey data didn’t tease out exactly why this is. But market factors and changing workplace dynamics could both be at play, according to Helbig.

The job market effect: Perception vs. reality

Perception of pay and the actual numbers are, of course, two different things.

“I think to some extent people are changing their perception about pay because of the shakiness of the economy,” Helbig says. “It’s not the same job market it was, say, three, four years ago coming out of COVID, where hiring was super hot.” People might have felt more confident then that if they didn’t get what they wanted, in terms of compensation, they could go somewhere else. “it’s not quite that job market environment now,” he says.

If you are grateful to be employed, you may be more likely to accept your current pay. But that doesn’t mean employers should bank on employees contentedly settling for whatever they offer.

Talking about pay — and valuing employees

Top Workplaces know that to attract and retain top talent, it’s worth it to talk about money — and create a culture where employees want to stick around.

“I do think that the best companies are very mindful about pay and continue to make sure that they are competitive about pay,” Helbig says. “It’s not necessarily about paying the top dollar. It’s about making sure they’re competitive and creating a great work experience. Because a great work experience, in and of itself, has value.”

For its part, Top Workplace and philanthropic organization Attic Angel is mindful of both. Jackie Aguilar, director of people and culture for the nonprofit, understands that many, like her, joined the organization because they want to contribute to the community.

But fulfilling a desire for meaningful work doesn’t mean an employer can skip meaningful conversations about pay, and Attic Angel is leaning into the latter as well. Employees have responded by being even more positive about the organization — and pay specifically — according to Top Workplaces survey results.

“We’re moving toward being more intentional and making sure we’re equitable with our compensation across the board,” says Aguilar, who heads human resources for Attic Angel. “That affects many areas — it affects our morale; it affects our recruiting.”

Discussing how pay is determined is also a key part of the conversation.

“I feel like we have been working toward more transparency,” Aguilar says. When employees have questions about their wages, the organization shares the market data; and a rationale is provided for compensation.

“Really the why behind compensation is most important,” Aguilar adds.

“We’ve been making progress in having more transparent conversations and talking about our efforts to get there to be more transparent.”

The value of a connected workplace

Top Workplaces typically stand out for more than pay and must remain competitive in other ways, including benefits and overall workplace culture.

People want to feel included, valued and believe that their company is going the right direction. In the latter regard, nearly 80.5% of surveyed Madison area employees responded positively to the statement: “I believe this company is going in the right direction.” That represented an improvement of more than 2.4 percentage points from the year before.

Surveyed employees also had a decidedly positive view of work-life flexibility and generally agreed with the statement: “I would highly recommend working at this company to others.” In both cases, positivity scores were above 81% and up more than 2 percentage points, respectively.

But that doesn’t mean employers that get culture “right” can pay poorly or opt out of the conversation together. Nor should they expect employees to keep the details about the numbers to themselves.

In an online world where employees can more easily compare pay, Helbig says that it behooves employers to discuss compensation and that is another way to show employees they are valued. Not doing so, by contrast, could be a competitive disadvantage.

“You should expect people are going to compare paychecks,” Helbig emphasizes, given employees naturally want to earn a competitive wage and to be compensated fairly. “It’s about being valued.”