Infrastructure delays see engineer salaries drop 3%

Engineer salaries dropped by 3% in 2012, the latest edition of the Engineers Australia Salary and Benefits Survey has shown. Covering over 130,000 employees across 383 public- and private-sector engineering employers, this is the first salary decrease recorded in the history of the survey.

“We’re hearing a lot of anecdotal information about major infrastructure and resource projects being deferred or delayed. It’s likely that this dip in salaries is evidence of employers adapting to changing market conditions,” said Stephen Durkin, Chief Executive Officer of Engineers Australia.

“A large proportion of Australia’s engineering workforce is employed in delivering major infrastructure projects, and record infrastructure spending has created an unprecedented demand for engineers, especially across the resources sector.”

Even a small downturn can have a major effect on the workforce as such a large proportion of the engineering workforce is employed in infrastructure delivery, Durkin said.

Transparency in the scheduling and provision of infrastructure projects is essential for labour-force planning, Durkin said, and will avoid acute demand spikes across specific locations and engineering specialisations, improving employment certainty.

“Australia must avoid the boom/bust infrastructure cycles seen in recent years. Simply put, the political cycle and the infrastructure delivery cycle need to be as separate as possible. Coming into election season, infrastructure delivery should not be treated like a political football; there are too many jobs at stake.

“Without the certainty that transparent project planning provides, engineers will either leave the profession or seek work overseas. With engineers in strong demand worldwide, this is a real risk for Australia as we aim to transition from a resource-based economy to a high-tech, high-value economy,” Durkin said.