微密圈

Thank God for infrastructure. That has to be the overarching message gleaned from the 微密圈/Hays Construction annual consultants鈥� salary guide. The results paint a picture of an industry that would be on its knees were it not for Crossrail, the Olympics and other major infrastructure work up and down the UK.

Last month鈥檚 Budget may have been notable for its lack of any clear measures on the future provision of infrastructure, but the sector鈥檚 buoyancy over the past year is evident in the pay packets of civil and structural engineers, which have risen 8-11%.

Of course, not everyone has a role that lends itself to large infrastructure schemes. Salaries have dropped by up to 6% for architectural and CAD technicians, partly as a result of the rise of building information modelling (BIM), and, once again, many junior roles have seen salary drops. The survey also reveals that most employees are working longer hours.However, there is one further glimmer of light: 48% of employers say they are planning to recruit within the next six months and 51% of employees are planning to move jobs this year.

The big winner

The key differentiator between the haves and the have-nots this year - apart from region and seniority - was infrastructure expertise. Senior structural engineers saw a 10% boost to an average salary of 拢33,818 - hitting 拢36,000 in London - and senior infrastructure engineers鈥� 2011 salary of 拢32,818 went up 7% to an average of 拢35,000 in London.

Lynne Crowe, director at Hays Construction, said: 鈥淐onfidence in the industry has been boosted by the long-awaited go-ahead for some major civil and engineering projects in various parts of the UK, as well as the ongoing impact of high-profile projects such as the Olympics and Crossrail in London.

鈥淐onsequently, structural and infrastructure engineers have seen the biggest increase in their salaries, as their skills are in increased demand to manage these projects.鈥�

Areas other than London that have benefited from the rise of infrastructure projects include the Midlands, thanks to projects such as the Nottingham tram extension, and the South-west, where there has been a 拢88.6m push on motorway work as part of the managed motorway contracts. Hays also reports a lack of experienced civil engineers in the South-west, which has led employers to increase salaries in order to attract specialists from elsewhere in the UK.

Christine Keates, a partner at building surveyor Tuffin Ferraby Taylor, says: 鈥淚nfrastructure schemes have certainly had an impact on the state of the industry. You only have to try and drive through London to know how much infrastructure work is going on. The works and jams are the parallel to the number of cranes you can see in a city as an indication for how much commercial work is going on. These sorts of schemes are definitely having a positive impact.鈥�

Lower infrastructure salaries were reported in the North-east and North-west, as might be expected, but the greatest regional variation was in Northern Ireland, which has been hit particularly hard by the recession. Here, salaries are as much as 拢10,000 below the London average.

Kamran Moazami, head of structure, property and development at engineer WSP, says: 鈥淭he start of this year has seen, all of a sudden, an increase in people asking for pay rises in engineering, as there are a lot of public projects underway in the UK - especially rail schemes.鈥�

Bob Tong, associate director of infrastructure at engineer Buro Happold, adds: 鈥淐ompetition for work remains fierce, but there is undoubtedly a wide range of interesting and challenging opportunities for civil and structural engineers at home and abroad. The UK government鈥檚 commitment to delivering infrastructure projects, in particular in the transport and energy sectors, has put civil engineers and structural engineers in a relatively strong position compared with other consultants.鈥�

The other end of the scale

While infrastructure specialists have prospered, others are not faring so well. Architectural technicians saw the biggest salary drop, by 6% to 拢24,955 - although in London the figure was just under 拢30,000. Senior CAD technicians also suffered, with a 5% salary drop to an average of 拢29,000. Again, the figure was considerably higher in London and up 拢5,000 to 拢34,000.

Many have blamed the rise of BIM for the impact on CAD technicians, as while they are still required for some aspects of projects that it, those without full 3D modelling training are going to be less in demand. The consensus seems to be that people in these areas of work must accept that BIM is here to stay and try to add to their skills.

鈥淪witch and learn,鈥� urges Moazami. 鈥淯se your existing skills and build on them to become BIM technicians and 3D modellers. It鈥檚 time to get into something new.鈥�

Like last year, younger employees and graduates bore the brunt of salary cuts, with assistant and newly qualified building surveyors seeing cuts of between 2% and 5%.

Many senior consultants argue that this is an unfortunate by-product of keeping businesses going through tough times by investing in experienced rather than new employees - partners and senior surveyors鈥� salaries remained steadier, either staying at the same level or increasing slightly.

鈥淚t鈥檚 tough but firms need to stay in business,鈥� says Peter Caplehorn, technical director at architectural practice Scott Brownrigg, 鈥渁nd to do that they need to invest in, and put their support behind, the people who will be able to win the work.鈥�

Tuffin Ferraby Taylor鈥檚 Keates adds that, with money tight, there are other benefits beyond salaries that employers can offer junior staff: 鈥淭his is not a spectacular time for anyone, salary-wise. Junior building surveyors may be feeling that, at the start of their careers, this is not as lucrative a job as they thought.

鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to give the best possible value to our junior employees through good mentoring, coaching and training to get them qualified as fast as possible. There is not a huge amount of money around at the moment for anyone so firms will have to think of other ways to add value - especially for staff who are starting out.鈥�

General trends

On a positive note, movement in the industry appears to be on the up. Hays鈥� Crowe says the survey revealed that 26% of the employers looking to recruit (nearly half of those surveyed) are recruiting for new jobs. That is a clear improvement on the 2011 survey, which reported that 63% of employers were not planning to recruit at all.

She adds that flexible working hours are becoming more widely accepted, with 64% of employers now offering 鈥渁n element of flexible working鈥�. However, bonuses are still far from common-place, with just 34% of employers surveyed offering performance-related bonuses in 2012.

Despite evidence of employers investing in more senior, work-winning, employees, 44% said they were concerned about the future workforce. While salaries may not reflect this sentiment, the survey did reveal that 51% of employers were working with schools or graduates to combat this problem.

Last year鈥檚 salary guide showed that almost 45% of consultants surveyed had had a pay cut in the previous 12 months, 35% were on pay freezes and 35% felt very insecure in their jobs. This year, nearly a third - 31% - experienced salary increases and most - 47% - had seen no change in their salaries. So things appear to be heading in the right direction, especially as 55% now feel secure or very secure in their roles.

鈥淥ur research is more encouraging this year,鈥� says Crowe. 鈥淭here are signs of movement in the construction job market and an increased willingness to recruit and move roles. There has been an average increase of 1.6% in consultants鈥� salaries since this time last year, which is reflected in the overall mood in the sector slowly improving.鈥�

[For the full results of the quantity surveyors鈥� survey, please see PDF attached]