According to the Year-End 2013 Consumer Survey by Georgia Credit Union Affiliates, 49.3 percent of respondents have never asked their employer for a pay raise. At the same time, only 17.8 percent of respondents reported being very satisfied with their current salary, and 46.5 percent said it has been longer than a year since their last salary increase. What is behind the reluctance of employees to request a pay raise? Are American employees missing the opportunity to earn a better living or simply ensuring the security of the jobs they currently hold?

A recent national survey by Salary.com reports 17 percent of respondents said they always negotiate for more money during performance reviews, and 41 percent said they never negotiate during reviews. When it comes to new job offers, 31 percent of respondents said they always negotiate their salary, and 20 percent said they never negotiate salary during the job interview process.

Why do so many employees choose not to ask for a salary increase? The reasons vary:

• Afraid of losing their job or job offer: 21 percent
• It's unpleasant: 19 percent
• Lack of negotiating skills: 15 percent
• Satisfied with original offer: 15 percent
• Other: 12 percent

Does asking pay off? According to the Salary.com study, it does. Only 20 percent of respondents reported they asked but received nothing during their most recent performance review. Another 31 percent didn't ask for more. Other outcomes were:

• Received less than requested: 22 percent
• Received the amount requested: 18 percent
• Received more than requested: 5 percent

The bottom line: 45 percent of respondents received a pay increase when they asked. 

Insider's Perspective:
"The first question employees should ask themselves before entering salary negotiations is whether the company is financially healthy," says Paula Kitchens, vice president of human resources, marketing and compliance at Augusta Metro Federal Credit Union in Augusta and membership director of the Society for Human Resource Management Georgia State Council. "Can the company afford to give them a raise?" 

She also suggests employees find out where their actual pay falls in the pay range for their position. "Do the research, but be careful of national salary statistics," she warns. "Many people look at national statistics and think that they are underpaid. You need to look at regionalized statistics for your area to get an accurate picture of where you are in the pay range."