Despite ongoing economic uncertainty, companies are betting on their best workers — and are willing to pay more to prove it, according to a report released today.

After years of stagnant wages, 97 percent of the 1,200 U.S. employers polled in a compensation survey by Mercer said they plan to increase salaries in 2012, CNNMoney reported.

The average increase in base pay is expected to be 3 percent in 2012, up slightly from 2.9 percent in 2011 and 2.7 percent in 2010, the consulting firm said.

Half of the businesses that plan to hike pay said they will do so in order to retain top talent.

The top-performing employees — just 8 percent of the work force — will see their salaries increase by an average of 4.8 percent next year, the survey said; average workers salaries will rise 3.1 percent. The weakest performers will be lucky to see anything at all. On average, they will receive a 0.3 percent pay increase in 2012, the survey found.

With many employees doing the work of two or even three people, employers are using compensation as a way to persuade top talent to stay put, said Catherine Hartmann, a principal at Mercer.

Although available jobs remain scarce, “if you are a top performer in a critical role, you are still valuable in the marketplace,” Hartmann said. “But it’s a select group of folks.”