Finance workers feel underpaid

CANBERRA: Number crunchers who steered their firms' books through the global financial crisis are now punching their calculators in anger at not getting a decent pay rise as the economy recovers.

A survey has found that 35 per cent of finance and accounting staff do not believe their present salary package is fair and in line with market rates.

Fuelling the discontent, the research by financial recruiting firm Robert Half shows 82 per cent of employees are confident in their company's growth prospects and expect to reap more rewards.

"Employees were willing to put the effort in during the downturn because they could see that things were hard across the board," Robert Half director Andrew Brushfield said when he released the survey on Thursday.

"But as the economy improves, employees that see their company profiting expect they should profit too."

Still, 41 per cent of the 656 accountants and finance workers surveyed had an increase in the past 12 months.

Eight per cent were awarded a rise of more than 10 per cent, over double the growth rate of average weekly earnings.

Employers are aware of the lack of satisfaction, with 65 per cent concerned about losing employees in the next year.

"While the market is recovering, it is recovering slowly. Employers are feeling the pressure to raise salaries, yet many will be unable to meet the demands of their teams," Brushfield said.

He expects a price war for candidates over the next year, especially as a looming skills shortage will demand firms pay more for the best people.

But he said employers needed to be proactive and look at other ways to compensate staff, such as offering professional development courses to develop skills and cultivate the satisfaction that comes with more responsibility.

"Letting employees see that you care about their career progression will foster loyalty and help retain staff."

Equally, he said, employees needed to agree to wider responsibilities, rather than just financial rewards, that would contribute to their business' overall performance, while positioning themselves for promotion next time around.

- AAP