Mark Vender
AIRAH has released the results of its 2022 salary survey, and they show that salaries are on the rise across the Australian HVAC&R industry.
The survey provides a snapshot of employment, salaries and expectations across the sector. The 2022 survey also offers a comparison to the original AIRAH salary survey conducted in 2019 – before the COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 1,500 people participated in the survey – compared to around 500 in the original iteration. And based on their responses, salaries have risen over the past three years.
Half of those surveyed have a gross annual base salary of $100,000 or more. In 2022, 18 of survey participants earn $150,000 or more, compared to 12 per cent in 2019.
The state with the highest proportion of respondents with a gross annual base salary of $100,000 or more was Queensland (58.8 per cent) ahead of Western Australia (58.2 per cent) and Victoria (51.7 per cent).
Buoyant expectations
Two‑thirds (66 per cent) of those surveyed say there will be an increase in their pay and benefits over the next year, compared to 61 per cent in 2019.
Victoria is the state where individuals are most negative about the possibility of an increase in pay and benefits over next year – 40 per cent say it will “decrease” or there will be “no change”.
ACT is the territory least likely to be negative on pay and benefits over the next 12 months – less than 30 per cent say it will “decrease” or “no change”.
Optimism about the economy trumps pessimism, with 38 per cent of survey participants describing the economic prospects over the next 12 months as “excellent” or “good”. This is versus the 23 per cent who say the economic prospects are “poor” or “very poor”.
Increased labour mobility
According to the responses, workers in the HVAC&R industry appear to be changing jobs more frequently than three years ago.
About one‑third (33 per cent) of those surveyed say it is “fairly likely” or “very likely” they will change their employers in the next 12 months, compared to 20 per cent in 2019.
The number of survey participants who have been with their current employer for five years or more dropped from 50 per cent in 2019 to 33 per cent in 2022.
The results of the survey are available at www.airah.org.au/salarysurvey
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