Compensation Glossary
Welcome to ERI SalaryExpert's compensation glossary, your resource for commonly used terms, formulas, and phrases related to compensation.
Social Security
A U.S. federal program of social insurance and benefits that was developed in 1935. The Social Security program's benefits include retirement income, disability income, Medicaid and Medicare, as well as death and survivorship benefits. Social Security is one of the largest government programs in the world, paying out hundreds of billions of dollars per year. Employers and employees pay payroll taxes to fund it.
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Salary Grade
Year of Service
Turnover
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion
Benchmarking
FICA
Long-Term Incentive Plan
Restricted Stock
Shift Differentials
Lead-Lag Pay Structure Policy
Mode
Hours of Work
Demotion
Bonus
Job Family
Defined Contribution Plans
Black-Scholes Model Z
Linear Regression
Individual Retirement Account (IRA)
Compensable Factors
Aging Survey Data
Market Based Salary Increase Budget
Merit Increase
Cost of Living
Salary Structure Change
Range
Range Penetration
Geographic Differential
Mean
Annual Incentive
General Salary Increase
Job Evaluation
Lump Sum Merit
Coefficient of Determination
Cost of Labor
Minimum Wage
Gender Pay Gap
Pay Grade
Promotional Increase
Salary Range
Median
Pay Range Overlap
Green Circle Rate
Range Spread
Standard Deviation
Total Rewards
Works Council
Mix
Lead Pay Structure Policy
Sales Compensation
Red Circle Rate
Quartile
Compa-Ratio
Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Stock Option Incentive
Broadbanding
Pay Equity
Defined Benefit Plans
Percentile
Midpoint Progression
Lag the Market
Step Rates
Benchmark Job
Market Pricing
Internal Equity
Standard Error of Estimate
Market Index
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About Us
ERI SalaryExpert was launched in 2000 by ERI Economic Research Institute to help organizations and individuals optimize salary planning. Our robust compensation management solution houses the global salary survey data and applications needed to design competitive and effective compensation structures. From benchmarking with reliable market data to analyzing geographic differentials and conducting pay equity analyses, our intelligent platform is an innovative way of merging integral salary survey data with efficient features, all in one system.
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Featured White Paper
Common Compensation Terms and Formulas - January 2026
Find commonly used compensation terms and formulas for your reference when planning compensation.
Ready to Streamline Your Compensation Strategy with Us?
Discover how our Assessor Platform can help you attract top talent, stay on top of market trends, and set your organization up for success, all in one platform.
Try a Free Demo
About Us
ERI SalaryExpert was launched in 2000 by ERI Economic Research Institute to help organizations and individuals optimize salary planning. Our robust compensation management solution houses the global salary survey data and applications needed to design competitive and effective compensation structures. From benchmarking with reliable market data to analyzing geographic differentials and conducting pay equity analyses, our intelligent platform is an innovative way of merging integral salary survey data with efficient features, all in one system.
Learn More