Is it reasonable to ask for a cost of living/inflation raise after getting new benefits?

Question

In February, my employer started allowing employee contributions to an RRSP with an employer match of up to $2500/year (which I am taking advantage of). This is kind of a soft raise of a not-insignificant amount (certainly above inflation), but since it's going to an RRSP, I can't take advantage of it any time soon.

My question: is it reasonable to ask for a raise to coincide with the inflation and increased cost of living of the last year even though we recently got this new benefit? If it is appropriate to ask, should it have been done around the anniversary of my employment?

Additional information:

• My company is very small (less than 10 employees including the owners)
• There's no formal process (recurring or otherwise defined) for this kind of thing
• There's no manager between myself and the owners - the request would go straight to one of them
• Contact with at least one owner is multiple times daily; we work closely with them

Answer 1

Yes, you should ask for the raise. The worst that can reasonably happen is that the managers/owners will decline.

Retirement matching benefits are the norm, so your employer was more getting up to standard than giving you a raise (although your total compensation did increase). Year-on-year increases to ensure you don’t see a decline in your real wage are also the norm - you might have to ask for it though.

Regardless, if you ever feel like you should be compensated more, you should ask your employer for the raise. Not asking is a missed opportunity.