There are plenty of drivers of candidate attraction - but salary is one of the strongest. Which industries have been recording the fastest and slowest advertised salary growth on SEEK? We've distilled the data so you can track your industry's pay packets
Industries on the rise
Banking & Financial Services, Community Service & Development and Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics led the industries that recorded the fastest year-on-year salary growth at the end of 2019.
NAB Economist Kaixin Owyong explains that salary growth in key industries aligns with broader economic trends.
The heightened regulatory environment within financial services, for example, may be leading to growing demand for compliance-related roles.
"There appears to be strong growth in advertised salaries for compliance-related roles," Owyong says. "Compliance and risk roles recorded a 6% rise."
Noting the 3.8% rise in salaries for Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics, Owyong says that much of the growth occurred in warehouse-related roles.
"Increased warehousing activity could be related to the ongoing shift to online retail," she says.
Owyong adds that the growth in advertised salaries across Community Service & Development may be due to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
"It’s likely to be driven by the NDIS, given the 4.8% increase in the average advertised salary of aged and disability support workers," she says.
Top 20 fastest growing salaries by specialisation
Sectors recording a salary slow down
While salaries raced ahead in some industries, sectors such as Real Estate & Property recorded a year-on-year decline, where Valuers’ salaries experienced a 9.2% decline.
"The general weakness in real estate salaries mirrors the weaker property market in 2019," Owyong says.
Severe weather conditions also had an economic impact in 2019 and Owyong says this has likely contributed to the slowdown in salaries across Farming, Animals & Conservation industry, where salaries in Agronomy & Farm Services roles fell by 3.6%.
“The weakness is most likely due to the drought,” she says.
Explore the salary trends in your industry
How are salaries shaping up in your industry? Select an industry to reveal the five roles that saw the fastest or slowest advertised salary growth year-on-year.
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Company Secretaries |
$106,954 |
$115,035 |
7.6% |
| 2 |
Management |
$113,368 |
$118,520 |
4.5% |
| 3 |
Forensic Accounting & Investigation |
$95,875 |
$99,680 |
4.0% |
| 4 |
Payroll |
$75,771 |
$78,573 |
3.7% |
| 5 |
Audit - Internal |
$107,367 |
$110,514 |
2.9% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Contracts Administration |
$74,621 |
$77,509 |
3.9% |
| 2 |
Office Management |
$68,520 |
$71,146 |
3.8% |
| 3 |
Data Entry & Word Processing |
$50,553 |
$52,242 |
3.3% |
| 4 |
PA, EA & Secretarial |
$76,313 |
$77,936 |
2.1% |
| 5 |
Receptionists |
$49,409 |
$50,410 |
2.0% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Promotions |
$62,722 |
$66,376 |
5.8% |
| 2 |
Photography |
$57,091 |
$59,494 |
4.2% |
| 3 |
Journalism & Writing |
$69,117 |
$71,931 |
4.1% |
| 4 |
Agency Account Management |
$82,495 |
$84,636 |
2.6% |
| 5 |
Media Strategy, Planning & Buying |
$83,231 |
$85,235 |
2.4% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Banking - Corporate & Institutional |
$103,237 |
$112,866 |
9.3% |
| 2 |
Compliance & Risk |
$115,827 |
$122,741 |
6.0% |
| 3 |
Treasury |
$107,176 |
$113,469 |
5.9% |
| 4 |
Corporate Finance & Investment Banking |
$113,867 |
$117,917 |
3.6% |
| 5 |
Client Services |
$65,824 |
$68,029 |
3.3% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Collections |
$59,251 |
$61,794 |
4.3% |
| 2 |
Sales - Inbound |
$57,129 |
$59,077 |
3.4% |
| 3 |
Management & Support |
$88,227 |
$90,952 |
3.1% |
| 4 |
Sales - Outbound |
$60,338 |
$61,980 |
2.7% |
| 5 |
Supervisors/Team Leaders |
$75,902 |
$77,868 |
2.6% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Estimating |
$99,890 |
$107,852 |
8.0% |
| 2 |
Surveying |
$99,808 |
$103,923 |
4.1% |
| 3 |
Contracts Management |
$110,375 |
$112,528 |
2.0% |
| 4 |
Project Management |
$126,767 |
$129,213 |
1.9% |
| 5 |
Management |
$126,342 |
$128,359 |
1.6% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Corporate Development |
$117,711 |
$123,529 |
4.9% |
| 2 |
Environment & Sustainability Consulting |
$97,037 |
$98,833 |
1.9% |
| 3 |
Management & Change Consulting |
$121,036 |
$123,058 |
1.7% |
| 4 |
Analysts |
$102,658 |
$103,921 |
1.2% |
| 5 |
Strategy & Planning |
$117,781 |
$119,195 |
1.2% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Materials Handling Engineering |
$99,822 |
$109,497 |
9.7% |
| 2 |
Mechanical Engineering |
$96,386 |
$101,095 |
4.9% |
| 3 |
Environmental Engineering |
$104,160 |
$108,965 |
4.6% |
| 4 |
Project Management |
$120,618 |
$125,575 |
4.1% |
| 5 |
Field Engineering |
$89,034 |
$92,242 |
3.6% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Winery & Viticulture |
$70,971 |
$77,419 |
9.1% |
| 2 |
Veterinary Services & Animal Welfare |
$70,846 |
$75,856 |
7.1% |
| 3 |
Horticulture |
$68,010 |
$71,267 |
4.8% |
| 4 |
Conservation, Parks & Wildlife |
$74,465 |
$76,420 |
2.6% |
| 5 |
Farm Management |
$83,535 |
$83,539 |
0.0% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Nursing - High Acuity |
$81,798 |
$91,331 |
11.7% |
| 2 |
Medical Imaging |
$99,572 |
$105,685 |
6.1% |
| 3 |
Residents & Registrars |
$112,586 |
$118,130 |
4.9% |
| 4 |
Nursing - Management |
$107,724 |
$112,925 |
4.8% |
| 5 |
Nursing - A&E, Critical Care & ICU |
$82,180 |
$85,823 |
4.4% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Travel Agents/Consultants |
$56,405 |
$58,854 |
4.3% |
| 2 |
Gaming |
$63,768 |
$66,023 |
3.5% |
| 3 |
Front Office & Guest Services |
$55,000 |
$56,603 |
2.9% |
| 4 |
Waiting Staff |
$51,678 |
$52,987 |
2.5% |
| 5 |
Chefs/Cooks |
$62,033 |
$63,352 |
2.1% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Remuneration & Benefits |
$102,307 |
$110,116 |
7.6% |
| 2 |
Management - Agency |
$101,318 |
$107,480 |
6.1% |
| 3 |
Management - Internal |
$114,324 |
$120,219 |
5.2% |
| 4 |
Training & Development |
$95,521 |
$99,494 |
4.2% |
| 5 |
Recruitment - Internal |
$82,801 |
$85,656 |
3.4% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Computer Operators |
$70,138 |
$77,411 |
10.4% |
| 2 |
Engineering - Hardware |
$94,852 |
$101,180 |
6.7% |
| 3 |
Database Development & Administration |
$102,902 |
$107,294 |
4.3% |
| 4 |
Technical Writing |
$94,963 |
$99,007 |
4.3% |
| 5 |
Web Development & Production |
$94,632 |
$98,273 |
3.8% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Risk Consulting |
$113,022 |
$124,814 |
10.4% |
| 2 |
Assessment |
$81,944 |
$87,868 |
7.2% |
| 3 |
Actuarial |
$109,413 |
$117,233 |
7.1% |
| 4 |
Superannuation |
$97,165 |
$102,686 |
5.7% |
| 5 |
Fund Administration |
$68,397 |
$72,129 |
5.5% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Personal Injury Law |
$94,626 |
$100,369 |
6.1% |
| 2 |
Environment & Planning Law |
$117,103 |
$123,614 |
5.6% |
| 3 |
Banking & Finance Law |
$120,212 |
$126,814 |
5.5% |
| 4 |
Legal Practice Management |
$100,973 |
$104,935 |
3.9% |
| 5 |
Industrial Relations & Employment Law |
$117,793 |
$122,277 |
3.8% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Import/Export & Customs |
$69,352 |
$73,183 |
5.5% |
| 2 |
Machine Operators |
$56,427 |
$59,433 |
5.3% |
| 3 |
Quality Assurance & Control |
$81,807 |
$85,635 |
4.7% |
| 4 |
Pattern Makers & Garment Technicians |
$68,736 |
$71,634 |
4.2% |
| 5 |
Warehousing, Storage & Distribution |
$56,711 |
$59,018 |
4.1% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Internal Communications |
$99,656 |
$104,021 |
4.4% |
| 2 |
Marketing Assistants/Coordinators |
$62,827 |
$64,328 |
2.4% |
| 3 |
Brand Management |
$99,560 |
$101,499 |
1.9% |
| 4 |
Marketing Communications |
$86,039 |
$87,682 |
1.9% |
| 5 |
Event Management |
$72,723 |
$73,773 |
1.4% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Power Generation & Distribution |
$113,992 |
$121,778 |
6.8% |
| 2 |
Surveying |
$119,552 |
$125,696 |
5.1% |
| 3 |
Oil & Gas - Drilling |
$105,164 |
$110,315 |
4.9% |
| 4 |
Health, Safety & Environment |
$118,219 |
$122,002 |
3.2% |
| 5 |
Mining - Engineering & Maintenance |
$127,983 |
$130,805 |
2.2% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Residential Sales |
$69,106 |
$70,565 |
2.1% |
| 2 |
Administration |
$58,404 |
$59,388 |
1.7% |
| 3 |
Body Corporate & Facilities Management |
$90,357 |
$91,276 |
1.0% |
| 4 |
Residential Leasing & Property Management |
$64,017 |
$64,520 |
0.8% |
| 5 |
Commercial Sales, Leasing & Property Mgmt |
$89,184 |
$89,769 |
0.7% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Planning |
$86,759 |
$90,317 |
4.1% |
| 2 |
Management - Store |
$57,915 |
$59,980 |
3.6% |
| 3 |
Management - Department/Assistant |
$56,082 |
$57,346 |
2.3% |
| 4 |
Retail Assistants |
$50,580 |
$51,669 |
2.2% |
| 5 |
Management - Area/Multi-site |
$91,311 |
$91,230 |
-0.1% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Analysis & Reporting |
$89,399 |
$92,544 |
3.5% |
| 2 |
Management |
$107,263 |
$110,969 |
3.5% |
| 3 |
New Business Development |
$94,198 |
$96,255 |
2.2% |
| 4 |
Sales Coordinators |
$59,865 |
$60,909 |
1.7% |
| 5 |
Sales Representatives/Consultants |
$71,256 |
$72,441 |
1.7% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Environmental, Earth & Geosciences |
$94,637 |
$100,175 |
5.9% |
| 2 |
Biological & Biomedical Sciences |
$89,978 |
$91,680 |
1.9% |
| 3 |
Food Technology & Safety |
$86,996 |
$88,125 |
1.3% |
| 4 |
Materials Sciences |
$94,054 |
$95,181 |
1.2% |
| 5 |
Laboratory & Technical Services |
$74,323 |
$75,012 |
0.9% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Management |
$73,220 |
$75,003 |
2.4% |
| 2 |
Fitness & Personal Training |
$61,488 |
$62,759 |
2.1% |
| 3 |
Coaching & Instruction |
$64,686 |
$63,076 |
-2.5% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Air Conditioning & Refrigeration |
$80,372 |
$85,002 |
5.8% |
| 2 |
Plumbers |
$70,621 |
$73,887 |
4.6% |
| 3 |
Electricians |
$81,411 |
$84,643 |
4.0% |
| 4 |
Automotive Trades |
$64,565 |
$67,087 |
3.9% |
| 5 |
Welders & Boilermakers |
$65,084 |
$67,489 |
3.7% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Landscape Architecture |
$86,426 |
$92,151 |
6.6% |
| 2 |
Architecture |
$90,027 |
$94,246 |
4.7% |
| 3 |
Fashion & Textile Design |
$73,335 |
$76,592 |
4.4% |
| 4 |
Urban Design & Planning |
$95,432 |
$97,447 |
2.1% |
| 5 |
Web & Interaction Design |
$103,365 |
$105,213 |
1.8% |
RANK
|
ROLE TYPE
|
2018
|
2019
|
%
|
| 1 |
Research & Fellowships |
34.8% |
$91,371 |
| 2 |
Student Services |
31.3% |
$73,057 |
| 3 |
Teaching - Vocational |
27.0% |
$83,387 |
