Client News > Release

26-05-2010

Employers expect salaries to remain stable over next twelve months as job opportunities rise again in April 2010

In April 10, as part of its annual Salary Guide, Premier Group conducted a survey of 417 senior-level operational and HR managers hiring across the finance, technical, office support and IT functions in businesses in Ireland.

The survey found that the majority of professionals (70%)  expect basic salaries to remain the same over the next twelve months with less than a quarter (22%) anticipating that pay will rise.  Only 8% think that salaries will decrease.

Managers in the finance sector showed the most positive outlook on remuneration with one third (30%) expecting basic salaries to rise, while 63% anticipate no change and the remaining 7% believe that salaries may decrease.  

Nearly a quarter, (24%) of survey respondents expect salaries for professionals in technical functions to rise over the next year, while 69% expect salaries to remain the same and 7% are expecting pay levels to decrease.

Only 18% of hiring managers expect office support salaries to rise in the coming year, with 73% believing they will remain the same and 9% anticipating that pay levels will fall.  

Marginally behind the office support sector, IT managers showed the least confidence in salaries rising, with 17% thinking pay will increase, while three quarters (75%) believe that salaries will stay the same over the next year, and 8% expect them to fall.

Brian Murphy, CEO, Premier Group Ireland commented: "Across Premier Group’s four brands, the results of the salary survey show that the vast majority of managers, 70%, are expecting basic salaries to remain stable over the next twelve months, reflecting the challenges that the Irish employment market has faced since the start of the downturn. Only 8% of respondents expect pay to go down over this period while 22% believe salaries are likely to rise.

"Employers in the finance sector who experienced a severely contracted jobs market in 2009,  expressed the most positive outlook on salary levels with close to a third expecting pay to rise in the coming year, ahead of those hiring for technical, office support and IT roles. The increasing demand that we are seeing for qualified accountants in financial services and opportunities for newly qualified accountants in general industry has given rise to a more positive market sentiment amongst finance professionals.

"IT managers are less optimistic about salary rises. There are still very good opportunities in software development and salaries have held up very well for talented professionals in this area. However, the increased popularity of cloud computing in the workplace means that those with infrastructure expertise have been less in demand than in previous years and remuneration packages have started to reflect this.

"Overall, the survey illustrates how the downturn has lowered expectations of professional salary levels.  In 2009, many people had to endure significant pay cuts and the survey shows that the general outlook for the next twelve months is for salaries to remain static".