Our 2022 salary survey demonstrates a positive step for salaries across all industries for both temporary and permanent roles, a much-needed fresh start after 2 years of pay freezes and furlough.

On the whole, permanent salaries have increased more than temporary hourly wages, most likely because less people in the office means fewer temp staff are needed. However, as always, there are peaks and troughs in the temp calendar with typical holiday times such as summer and Christmas proving just as in demand. Across the varying support staff roles entry level position salaries have stayed almost the same as last year while more senior EAs, PAs and Office Managers have seen an increase in the top salaries they can reach. Looking at the different industries PAs to private individuals or families are still offered the highest salaries, however, these roles frequently come with very precise demands and can often mean working away from home and for extended hours. Salaries across all other industries have risen on last year, with charities and creative companies still paying the least.

2022 has seen an industry wide candidate shortage, meaning that when it comes to offers it’s been candidates in the driving seat and companies have been looking at other ways to attract talent on top of salaries. We’ve seen elevated benefit packages across industries with an emphasis on hybrid working and flexi hours; often a source of contention between candidates who want the freedom to work from home and companies who are pushing for them to return to the office. In response, many companies are including free office lunches, subsidies for commuting costs, and cycle to work schemes in their benefit packages to lure candidates back in. On top of this we’ve noticed a huge increase in the emphasis on mental health in benefit packages with ‘wellbeing days’ becoming a regular benefit, something rarely seen before a few years ago. This is in addition to more companies offering gym membership contributions, training courses and discounts on health foods and services.

Due to the political events of the last few months and the rising cost of living we’re not expecting to see huge rises in salaries over the next year and wouldn’t be surprised if the figures stay roughly as they are. However, there is no doubt the job market is still buoyant with a high demand for candidates and we predict benefit packages to stay competitive and only increase in regards to what they offer the best potential candidates in the coming year.