Technology, supply chain and engineering roles saw highest salary increases in NI in 2021, reveals Hays

Technology, engineering and supply chain roles have secured the top salary increases over the past 12 months in Northern Ireland, according to new data released by recruiting experts Hays.

In a list of the top 20 roles which received the highest increases, 10 were in technology, six were in engineering and manufacturing, three were in procurement, supply chain & logistics, and one was in the legal sector.

This compares to a UK-wide survey which was dominated by tech, with 15 of the roles with the highest salary increases in technology, highlighting the high demand for IT professionals across the country.

In Northern Ireland, supply chain managers saw an increase of 18.2%, the highest increase in the top 20, followed by data analysts, who saw an increase of 16.7%.

Other roles which experienced above average increases included heads of legal (15.6%), technology product owners (15%) and process engineers (14.3%).

In the UK-wide survey, security architects saw an increase of 16.4%, the highest increase within the top twenty, while penetration testers saw an above average increase of 10.6%.

Three of the top 20 UK salary rises were for cyber security roles, receiving increases of above 8%.

Overall, salaries across the UK increased by 2.8% according to the Hays Salary & Recruiting Trends 2022 guide, above the 1.2% witnessed last year. In Northern Ireland, the data showed that the average salary increase was slightly higher at 3.2%.

The salary guide reports annually on recruitment intentions across the UK and this year is based on the analysis of over 10,000 salaries, alongside survey data of over 22,700 employers and professionals.

More than two-thirds (69%) of employers in Northern Ireland said they intend to increase salaries over the next year, compared with 61% UK-wide and professionals working in areas such as technology, engineering and manufacturing, marketing, life sciences and construction can expect double digit salary growth to continue.

Over a third (36%) of Northern Ireland workers said they are dissatisfied with their currently salary.

The main cause for this dissatisfaction is that they feel their salary does not reflect their individual performance (56%).

While many employers are competing on salary, close to two-thirds (63%) of local professionals say they would be prepared to accept a lower paid job for a better work-life balance or a job with more purpose.

Outlining the demand for quality workforce and skilled employees, John Moore, managing director of Hays in Northern Ireland, believes this will result in ‘upwards pressure on pay rates’ which is ‘likely to continue into 2022’.

He explained: “As hiring intentions continue to climb, areas of the workforce are seeing double digit salary growth.

“The high demand for staff coupled with low levels of skilled talent in a number of sectors means upwards pressure on pay rates is likely to continue into 2022.

“Our findings show that while salary is important, staff are also attracted to roles with better work-life balance and roles which offer more purpose. People are increasingly being motivated to work for organisations which prioritise social responsibility and doing good – there’s a clear shift away from more traditional motivators such as pay and benefits.

“Opportunities to volunteer, support charitable organisations, and having a clear strategy for sustainability are all really important to candidates.”

The survey was conducted between August 9 – 31 2021 and received 22,749 responses, including 1,084 from Northern Ireland.

It was completed by professionals from the UK working across a range of industry sectors. The salary data was compiled using information gathered during 2021 from Hays offices across the UK, and is based on job listings, job offers and candidate registrations. The salaries featured in the top 20 list are nationwide averages for each job role.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper whenever you are able to do so.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper when you can safely.

You can also enjoy unlimited access to the best news from across Northern Ireland and the UK by subscribing to newsletter.co.uk

With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Thank you