Business Journalist Despite the impacts of Covid-19 and the uncertainty surrounding the prospects for a free trade agreement between the EU and the UK in the coming weeks, it appears that workers in the private sector can look forward to pay rises in excess of 2% next year. This is according to the latest Willis Towers Watson Salary Budget Planning report. The average increase is expected to come in at 2.3% compared to a 2.1% rise this year. There has also been a halving in the proportion of firms that expect to freeze pay next year with 11% of firms saying they may have to implement such a measure, down from 23% this year.