Know You Are Paying Your Employees Fairly

Salary surveys are useful management tools, which can be used as a basis for establishing pay and for comparing company wages to the labor market. By comparing wages, companies can develop competitive pay structures that do not over or under pay market demands. By keeping up to date and being competitive on wages, we satisfy our employees and simplify our job. Surveys can provide an effective strategy for allocating funds to recruiting and retaining workers.

With all the information available on the Web, salary survey information is easy to locate. Finding the right survey may be more difficult. Sources include professional and trade associations, industry magazines and publications and the government. Here is a list of sites and what they have to offer.

• Salary Data and Articles An in-depth review of hiring activity, salaries and trends nationwide from the publishers of the Wall Street Journal.
• My JobSearch In order to be confident in negotiating a salary offer, you need to research salary trends and averages. These tools will give you the knowledge you need to negotiate a salary that accurately reflects your worth.
• Salary Survey and Career Navigator by Romac International, offers a free publication that provides you with the latest trends and salary data for most major industries:

• Those needing salary information on higher education, engineering or computer fields can find a list of locations at HR Plaza: Survey Salary Sites. Information on top markets and unemployment statistics can be found in the Fast Facts section.
• With over 100 listings, JobSmart seems to be the largest database online for salary survey information. It is a California Job Search site that has classified surveys into two sections:
  • General Surveys
  • Profession Specific Surveys
    
• The Bureau of Labor Statistics includes salary information by profession in the Occupational Outlook Handbook. It also provides information on job outlooks.
• Recruitment Extra also lists its surveys by disciplines that range from Accounting to HR to Technical Writers. The bulk of surveys are in Computer and Engineering fields.
• Wageweb offers compensation data on 150 benchmark positions in areas of Administration, Engineering, Finance, Healthcare, HR, Information Management, Manufacturing, and Sales/Marketing. Job descriptions are also available on Wageweb. Members may also view data by geography, size of organization or industry. Membership requires a nominal fee per year.