What kind of raise will you give and get in 2012?

Fall may have just begun, but many companies have been in a deep freeze for years … when it comes to salaries. So will 2012 hold more of the same?

Probably not , according to new data out of Aon Corp. It looks like just 4% of employers plan to keep the coffers welded shut as far as salary increases in the coming year.

But how generous will you be able to be with your staffers? And what does it mean for your own compensation?

Take a look at what Aon’s predicting and what it means for you as a manager and an employee.

Average boost: Just under 3%

Here’s what salary increases are expected to look like in the new year, based on employee type:

• Salaried exempt: 2.9% (vs. 2.7 in 2011)
• Salaried nonexempt: 2.9% (vs. 2.8 in 2011)
• Nonunion hourly: 2.9% (vs. 2.8 in 2011)
• Union: 2.7% (vs. 2.7 in 2011), and
• Executives: 2.9% (vs. 2.6 in 2011).

While not much of an improvement over this year’s increases, they are the best numbers employers have been able to offer since 2008. And they’re a big improvement over the record lows bestowed upon employees in 2009.

That history lesson may be helpful when it’s time to offer your increases to your own staffers in 2012.

The perspective will make still-modest increases easier to appreciate.  And if your company is being even more generous the averages predicted, make that known, too, even if it’s just for your highest performers.

Incentive pay still rules the day

Speaking of which, you probably want to continue to explore ways you can get everyone in your finance department striving to be those superstars. Performance-based pay programs remain the way most of your peers use their limited compensation dollars to the max.

The vast majority (92%) of companies now have some sort of incentive-based program in place. Compare that to just three-quarters of companies that did back in 2005.

It’s worth finding a way to link staffers’ impact on the bottom line with the increase they’ll receive. That can help ensure they’ll be even more in the pot for raises in 2013!