Google gives raises to employees to reduce poaching from Facebook

Google has given all of its employees $1,000 cash “holiday bonuses” and 2011 salary increases of at least 10%, a loyal reader tells us. In addition, Google will also give each employee an additional raise equivalent to 1X the employee’s target bonus for the year. And employees will be eligible for additional “merit increases” based on their individual performance. Google will pay the taxes on the $1,000 holiday cash bonuses, thus allowing employees to keep the whole thing

About 10,000 of Google’s 23000 staff are in the San Francisco Bay Area (mostly at the Googleplex offices in Mountain View

The raises are another modest signal of the beginnings an an upswing in the silicon valley labor markets.

The unemployment rate in the Silicon Valley was 11.2 percent in September, unchanged from a revised 11.2 percent in August and slightly below the year-ago estimate of 11.7 percent

Year over year, industry employment in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara metropolitan statistical area grew by 6,700 jobs or 0.8 percent. This marked the San Jose metro area’s first year-over job gain after 23 consecutive months of decreases.

Professional and business services registered a net expansion of 4,400 jobs over the year. The largest year-over gains within the industry included employment services (up 2,700 jobs) and computer systems design (up 2,200 jobs.)

Manufacturing grew by 3,100 jobs, as a gain of 5,400 jobs in computer and electronic products more than offset smaller losses in nondurable goods and other detailed durable goods industries

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