According to a recent salary survey, the outlook isn’t great for pay increases across all industries for the year ahead. What’s on the cards for the HR sector?
HR professionals hoping for a pay rise in the year ahead might want to consider working in Western Australia.
According to the Australian Institute of Management’s 2014 National Salary Survey, Western Australia had the highest average pay rise for HR professionals at five per cent, which was above the average national pay rise of 3.6%, recorded across all industries.
The next best state for HR was Queensland, with an average 3.86% pay rise, while New South Wales, Southern Australia and Victoria all sat close to the national average.
The largest average pay rise doesn’t necessarily mean the largest pay packet, though.
According to the Kelly Services 2014 Salary Guide, the average wage for a human resources coordinator ranges from $70,000 in SA, down to $50,000 in NSW.
For a human resources assistant, the highest average wage is $55,000 in ACT and NSW, while the lowest is $50,000 in QLD and SA.
According to the National Salary Survey, the 3.6% average pay rise across all industries dropped from 3.9% last year and the downward trend is expected to continue across all states and territories.
Resignations increased across the board, from 11.7% last year to 12.2% this year – and insufficient financial reward was cited as a key reason for jumping ship.
Matt Drinan, head of research for the Australian Institute of Management NSW & ACT, said the top three reasons for people leaving their jobs were a desire for a new challenge, limited career advancement opportunities and insufficient financial reward.
Although pay ranked behind challenges and career advancement, Drinan said more than half of those resigning were seeking a higher salary.
“That is something that has actually increased since last year’s survey in terms of the proportion of companies that reported staff leaving due to insufficient pay. This is proof that salary is still a major motivator for employees to change roles.
“Getting pay and financial incentives market competitive plays an important part in attracting or retaining good staff. Where this isn’t possible, companies need to think more creatively when it comes to pay.”
He said that pay was one of the most expensive components of running a business, so increasing salaries across the board could have a major impact.
Instead, businesses could create solutions that work both for the individual and the organisation.
“If you want to include people into forms of profit-sharing schemes, that helps to engage the staff and helps them to improve the bottom line at the same time, without a major cost to the organisation.”
Reasons for workers leaving roles
New challenge: 78%
Limited career advancement opportunities: 53.2%
Insufficient financial reward: 51.4%
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