[status_quo69]

It's not secretly a salary cut, it's an explicit salary cut relative to the cost of living and everything else. After all, your money is worth less now than it was a year ago if there's no cost of living increase? I'm sure the initial circumstances of salary negotiations for a position took into account current economic factors. I'm much less likely to want to stick around at a company that cannot compete with living expenses with a general 2% increase YoY. That screams stiff/cheap or that the company is on the cusp of folding.

[SoftTalker]

But the company itself faces all those challenges too. Customers are cutting back because inflation is forcing them to reallocate their own spending. Supplies cost more. Raising prices isn't always possible in the face of competition, at least not enough to offset inflation.

Inflation is basically a correction for a previous period where money was too cheap. It hurts everyone (at least everyone who didn't prepare for it).

[danaris]

The company can dry its tears with the several billion in profit they make.

There's no non-greed-related reason they can't share that profit with their employees, rather than stiffing them just when they need help.