Employment and Remuneration Survey Report Out Now
The latest Professional Scientists Employment and Remuneration Survey Report has now launched.
Download the report here. Professional Scientists Australia has called for future STEM strategies to focus on increasing the participation, retention and career advancement of women after a new report found that female scientists still receive significantly lower pay than males and a higher proportion were preparing to leave the industry compared with males.
Professionals Australia CEO Jill McCabe said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has renewed the ongoing discussion of diversity in STEM with concerns that the health crisis will further entrench or widen the under-representation of women and other groups in STEM fields. The optimal approach will be to invest in initiatives that have the potential to contribute to business and economic growth while advancing women’s progress.”
The report found that women scientists received just 82.9% of the remuneration received by their male counterparts, and one in five female scientists were planning to leave the science workforce compared with one in six male scientists surveyed.
“This report confirms that teaching more girls and women STEM skills and increasing the number of female STEM graduates is not enough to solve this problem.”
The report also found that while base salaries for full time professional scientists grew by 2.2 percent, a large number of scientists had not received any pay increase over the last year and many believed they were not being properly remunerated.
Some of the key findings in the report:
- Over the past 12 months, average remuneration for scientists increased by a modest 2.2 per cent and 27 per cent of respondents had not received any pay increase over that time
- The average base salary for scientists was $115,000 and the average total package was $131,488
- Women earned on average 82.9 per cent of the earnings of male respondents
- Over one quarter of respondents were dissatisfied with their pay and 37.3 per cent felt their remuneration was falling behind market rates
- Over one third of respondents reported insufficient opportunity for skill development over the past 12 months
- 18.3 per cent of respondents intended to leave the profession permanently.
Find out about salary and job trends in Australia by downloading the free report
here.
“The crucial role of our scientific, technical and research expertise in a strong public health response to save lives has been front and centre in the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis has highlighted the role of scientists as trusted expert information sources and effective public communicators of containment strategies.”
“Professional Scientists Australia will ensure that scientists play the central role they should in rebuilding the national economy beyond the pandemic.”
“Science, research and technology are crucial to creating new jobs, boosting productivity and growing smart new technology-enabled industries. If STEM professionals are to play the central role they should in ensuring science, engineering and technology help grow the Australian economy beyond the COVID-19 crisis, scientists must be properly recognised, respected and valued. Our capacity to rebuild a growing, competitive Australian economy will depend on it.”
Our employment and remuneration report, run in conjunction with
Science and Technology Australia, is the most comprehensive, up-to-date guide available in Australia.
Download your copy today.
Download the 2020/21 Professionals Scientists Employment and Remuneration Report
Click here for the Professional Scientists Employment and Remuneration Report 2020/21 Media Release.
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