Hay Group’s Survey “Getting the Market Pulse”
Overview
Greece, March 2013
Dear Partner,
We are delighted to present you the main findings of the “2013 Hay Group’s Getting the Market Pulse
Survey“ for the Greek market.
The survey was conducted by the Hay Group Athens‘ office team in February 2013, with the
participation of 126 companies from all major business sectors in the Greek market.
The purpose of the survey was to get the latest insights on current HR issues, regarding pay
movements and HR priorities that companies in the Greek market consider as of main concern. In
addition, we aimed to provide an update on how companies reacted or intend to respond to recent
labor law changes.
In the full report includes you will find information on :
How many employees
will be redundant in
2012? Why? How?
What do companies that
did reduced their
headcount in 2012
intend to do in 2013?
What do companies that
did not provide bonus in
2012 intend to do in
2013?
How have companies
reacted to the expiration
of collective
agreements?
Were bonus
provided in 2012
and 2013? To
whom? If not why?
Which benefits
are at the hot
spot?
In cases of reductions/freeze
what are alternative ways of
compensating top
performers?
How many companies
that had reduced
revenues in 2012
provided increases?
What are the main
areas of focus for
HR Professionals?
How many companies
froze/increased/decreased
salaries in 2012 and 2013, in
which employee categories
and by how much, per sector?
How have companies
reacted to the new
lowest wage level of the
General Labour
Agreement?
What will companies do
regarding the marriage
allowance, the Length of
Service Premium and the
balance sheet allowance?
What were the
staffing level
changes in 2012 and
what are the
estimations for 2013?
How many companies are
applying flexible working
arrangements? At which
employee levels?
What were the main cost
rationalization plans in
which HR was involved?
We hope that you will find this report interesting, useful and adding value for your decision making.
Hay Group actively develops its information services in-line with the needs of our clients. This is a
continuous process and we would welcome any suggestions you may have which can be incorporated
in the future.
If you need more information, or if you wish to obtain the full report, please feel free to contact:
Eleni Gkirtzimani at +30 2112118122 or
Spyros Gkinos at +302112118101 or
Anna Giole at +302112118177
Kind regards,
Hay Group SEE Team
www.haygroup.com
Page 2 - 9
Summary
“2013 Getting the market pulse survey“
Main Findings





In 2012, on average 58% of participants reported that they had frozen salaries, while 31%
reported salary increase. The respective percentage for salary decreases was 11%. The
total pay movement reported by companies in 2012 (including increases, freeze and
decreases) was 0% (median value). The actual increases reported by companies in 2012
stood at 2,6% (median value).
From the 55% of the participants that have already decided about their base salary
adjustments in 2013, 30% on average will provide salary increases, 67% will freeze salaries
and only 3% will implement salary decreases. 40% of companies that decreased salaries in
2012 intend to decrease salaries in 2013 as well, while 60% of companies that decreased
salaries in 2012 intend to freeze salaries in 2013
Total pay movement forecast in 2013 (including increases, freeze and decreases)
remains 0% (median value). The overall forecasted real salary increase for 2013 stands at
2% (median value), slightly decreased compared to the respective actual 2012 figure.
71% of the participants provided bonus to eligible employees to at least one employee
category in 2012. The majority of companies that did not provide bonus in 2012 will also not
give bonus in 2013.
The percentage of companies that estimate to reduce headcount levels in 2013 is 29%,
significantly reduced compared to 2012 figure which stood at 52%. However, it is worth
mentioning that 42% of the companies that reduced their headcount in 2012 will further
reduce it in 2013. Overall, only 13% of companies intend to reimburse above legal limits in
case they proceed to lay-offs.

67% of participants do not have or do not intend to apply flexible working arrangements
(ευέλικτες μορφές εργασίας).

Almost half of participants responded that they are not going to proceed to any salary
changes due to the expiration of Collective Labor Agreements.

In 2012, 34% of the companies saw a decrease in their profits, whereas 31% managed to
increase their profitability despite the difficult conditions. For 2013, companies appear to
be more optimistic, as 84% expect to see an increase and only 4% expect to see a
decrease this year. It is important to note that 55% of the companies that had increased
revenues in 2012 did not provide any increases to their employees.
Performance management remains the primary area of HR focus for 2013 (49%). Other
areas of considerable attention are Employee Engagement as well as Organizational
structure issues.

Executive Summary
www.haygroup.com
Page 3 - 9
Participants Statistics
The sample of this survey consists of 126 companies operating in several business sectors in the
Greek market. 61% of these are foreign owned, 29% Greek owned and 11% are joint ventures.
Participating companies distinguished by primary sector
www.haygroup.com
Page 4 - 9
What’s new in HR?
Hay Group has taken its 60 years of research and experience and channelled it into a new suite of
powerful off-the-shelf tools and protocols that will help you find, reward and develop the talent within
your organization – and maximize your return on investment in your people.
Every solution is proven, competitively priced and available off the shelf – and there’s one to help you
at every stage of the employee lifecycle, from spotting hidden talent at the recruitment stage to helping
your leaders create working climates in which everyone can thrive.
www.haygroup.com
Page 5 - 9
www.haygroup.com
Page 6 - 9
www.haygroup.com
Page 7 - 9
www.haygroup.com
Page 8 - 9
Africa
Cape Town
Johannesburg
Pretoria
Asia
Bangkok
Beijing
Hong Kong
Ho Chi Minh City
Jakarta
Kuala Lumpur
Mumbai
New Delhi
Seoul
Shanghai
Shenzhen
Singapore
Tokyo
Europe
Athens
Barcelona
Berlin
Bilbao
Birmingham
Bratislava
Bristol
Brussels
Bucharest
Budapest
Dublin
Frankfurt
Glasgow
Helsinki
Istanbul
Kiev
Lille
Lisbon
London
Madrid
Manchester
Milan
Moscow
Oslo
Paris
Prague
Rome
Stockholm
Strasbourg
Vienna
Vilnius
Warsaw
Zeist
Zurich
Middle East
Dubai
Riyadh
Tel Aviv
North America
Atlanta
Boston
Calgary
Chicago
Dallas
Edmonton
Halifax
Kansas City
Los Angeles
Mexico City
Montreal
New York Metro
Ottawa
Philadelphia
Regina
San Francisco
San José (CR)
Toronto
Vancouver
Washington DC Metro
Pacific
Auckland
Brisbane
Melbourne
Perth
Sydney
Wellington
South America
Bogotá
Buenos Aires
Caracas
Lima
Santiago
São Paulo
Hay Group is a global management consulting firm that works with
leaders to transform strategy into reality. We develop talent, organize
people to be more effective and motivate them to perform at their
best. Our focus is on making change happen and helping people
and organizations realize their potential.
We have over 2600 employees working in 85 offices in 49 countries.
Our insight is supported by robust data from over 100 countries. Our
clients are from the private, public and not-for-profit sectors, across
every major industry. For more information please contact your local
office through www.haygroup.com.
www.haygroup.com
Page 9 - 9