Salary survey - Inside Housing, May 2008

20 June 2008 | By Philippa Ward

With belts tightening all over the country, there is comfort to be found in Inside Housing’s exclusive salary survey.

For the full results see the related images to the right of the story

The social housing sector is enjoying above-inflation pay rises, according to research carried out by Hays Social Housing.

While teachers grumble over 2.45 per cent and the armed services get 2.6 per cent, social housing professionals have enjoyed an inflation-busting average pay rise of 4 per cent, putting them in line with the private sector. Most are doing better than last year, when generic and supported housing salaries rose by an average of 2.5 per cent.

This does not apply across the board. There are significant regional variations, and the skills shortage is pushing up salaries in certain disciplines. For some lucky specialists, such as project workers, the boost goes as high as 6.4 per cent. Niche knowledge is the way to command higher pay rises: professionals with homelessness and domestic violence experience, case workers and tenancy support officers are among the most sought after professionals.

Pay rises on the development and regeneration side are down from the heady heights of 2006/07, when regeneration officers, for example, were getting rises of 10.4 per cent. But government building targets make some upward pressure likely to continue.

Economic slowdown aside, there are two major forces influencing salary levels in the sector. First is the never-ending stream of housing association mergers, which are increasing the pool of labour available. The other is professionalisation: with many housing officers roles requiring a housing studies qualification, salaries are being driven up to match those expectations.

So far, qualifications aren’t causing problems with recruitment. Although 63 per cent of employers that recruited in the last six months experienced problems, half of those attributed the difficulties to a skills - and not a qualifications - shortage. And some employers are showing willing to address that problem by training up staff.

Retention is another issue – and hardly surprising given that 89 per cent of respondents anticipated that they would be getting a new job in the next three years, with 41 per cent moving in a for a higher salary. One third will be moving because they want a new challenge.

But many employers seem oblivious to why employees are leaving – not one thought work/life balance was behind retention problems when 18 per cent of employees gave that as a reason for leaving. Perhaps they should be listening more, as 82 per cent of employees said they would or might stay with their employer if their reason for leaving was addressed.

So there is more to life than money. When housing staff do think about moving jobs, their two must-haves are a minimum of 25 days annual leave and flexible working, with pensions coming in third. Employers put their priorities slightly differently, with 88 per cent offering a pension (and nearly half of those are final salary pension, with flexible working and training support as the other most common benefits.

Readers' comments (4)

Sandra Martin | 01/08/2008 1:11 pm
I have worked in the housing sector as a temp for many years. Most temps are offered permenant work after a while. I have found that most HA's do not really listen to experienced staff and seem to be oblivious to the frustration felt by many when strategies and procedures clearly do not work. For example, one organisation uses customer service staff to direct highly paid professional housing staff by way of work flows. The directions are frequently misguided and the CS staff have no idea what section 8 is for example. It should come as no suprise under these circumstances that staff leave and problems, such as high arrears, are not resolved. Also there is a real problem with managers not knowing their stuff and sometimes, it has to be said, stealing ideas and taking credit for the hard work of temps especially but also permenant staff. After many years in the sector, it is obvious to me that a real shake up needs to take place and problems faced squarely otherwise we are living in a fools paradise with ever escalating arrears and complaints. Please, feel free to ask staff what they really think and away from consequences their honesty might generate.
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Pat Faille | 11/08/2008 10:37 am
I just can't accept the issue of Public Sector staff requesting higher leave and salaries while the private sector is having to lay off up to 40% of staff and being told there will be no pay rise over the next year. Those who retain their jobs are grateful, their colleagues are unemployed with all the effects of that and no one is recruiting. My husband and son work in the private sector of housing development. They are both spared at this time but know that may not be the case by C'mas. We all need to tighten our belts just now and hope for improvement in the future.

I'm self employed to deal with the administration of RTA/RTB for Housing Associations. I would never, at this time. ask to have my costs increased.
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Rebecca | 25/08/2008 12:19 pm
Why do people, especially admin staff, complain about more senior staff taking credit or stealing their ideas....get off your fat arses and get a professional qualification...try it! and you might see how much you have to retain and recall and how hard it is to cope with change in legislation and policy at the touch of a button...admin have it easy, you have a workload that requires care but you haven't got a cluewhat professionals have to do..so belt up!"
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stacey | 10/09/2008 11:50 pm
It is perfectly obvious by Rebeccas response that she is a 'senior' manager with an ego to match her over-inflated salaries. After moving into housing after a number of years working in the private sector it is clear that most mangers have absolutely no concept of pressure or hard work. I would bet a years salary that you only work a 35 hour week and probably spend most of your time strutting around the office lording it over your 'subordinates'. I would also guess that you climbed the ladder because of who you know and not what....Just remember that if all the senior managers walked out for a month - no-one would notice. It would be a different story if all your admin staff walked out! Perhaps you should get off your fat lazy arse and get a job in the real world - remember...qualifications mean you can read a book!!!!
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