Employees' pay rises despite economy

With the economy in a slump, are companies offering employees lower salaries?
Not this year, according to a recent WorldatWork survey. On average, companies plan to increase salary budgets by 3.9% over the next year. The same goes for salaries the following year, too.
Why doesn’t the economy seem to be having a negative effect on employee compensation?
One reason employers are keeping raises steady is rising inflation that’s eating up bigger and bigger chunks of employees’ salaries.
Therefore, employers need to keep offering raises to attract and retain workers.