Personal assistant and secretarial salaries are increasing at a faster rate in the North than London, according to findings from the Robert Walters 2013 Salary Survey.
Permanent salaries for support staff in the North of the UK are up 2.4% year-on-year (they have fallen 1.2% in London), while contract rates in the region are also up 2.9% (they have increased by 0.9% in London). This compared to overall UK figures of -0.1% for permanent salaries and +0.9% for contract rates.
These relatively low average increases in basic pay are reflected in the fact that 40% of secretarial and support professionals received salary increases in 2012. The Robert Walters Compensation Survey (conducted in November 2012) also reveals that 38% received a bonus pay out last year. But more are predicting pay rises (49%) and bonuses (42%) in 2013.
Lucy Bisset, Manager of Secretarial and Support Recruitment for the North region for Robert Walters, comments:
“The fact that salaries are creeping up in the North is a reflection of the jobs market across the region. While the market remains tough and vacancy levels are not spectacularly high, employers are willing to be flexible for talented professionals with desired skills. In particular, team secretaries and personal assistants with good Microsoft Office skills are especially in demand and are receiving salary uplifts when they are moving jobs.
“Businesses are noticeably reluctant to commit to permanent headcount and many are preferring to hire on a temporary basis, which explains why contract rates have increased to the extent they have. Interestingly, many professionals who are being hired on this basis are subsequently being offered permanent positions.”
Danika Jarmer, Associate Director of Secretarial & Support Recruitment in Robert Walters’ London office, comments:
“Although market conditions are clearly challenging, secretarial professionals are still receiving salary increases and employers are keen to attract and retain strong support staff. The majority of recruitment demand in London is from smaller companies at the moment as these employers seek personal assistants and team secretaries to support their business growth.”
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About the Robert Walters Salary Survey 2013
The Robert Walters Salary Survey 2013 is a review of recruitment and pay trends across each of the 23 countries that the firm operates in globally. The figures quoted are based on the difference between the average salary figures for each of the roles we have recruited for from January 2012 to January 2013.
About the Robert Walters Pay and Compensation Survey
The Robert Walters Pay and Compensation survey, conducted in November 2012, is based on the responses of 2,419 professionals about the pay and bonuses they received and their compensation expectations for the future. 123 of these respondents were secretarial and support professionals.
About Robert Walters
Robert Walters is one of the leading international recruitment consultancies, with a network of 53 offices spanning 24 countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Continental Europe, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, South Africa and South America.
