Map reveals the Australian addresses with the fattest wages

THE news is good for Bowen and Gladstone residents. But if your postcode starts with a 5, you might want to call the removalists.

BRAND new research has revealed the country’s high-salary hot spots — as well as the postcodes with the smallest paychecks.

The national wages survey, which was analysed by jobs website adzuna.com.au, found the Bowen and Gladstone regions of Queensland — with postcodes starting with 46 and 47 — topped the list, with average wages ranging between $129,024 and $101,170 respectively.

ACT postcodes starting with 26 took out second place with the average salary sitting at $103,752, while South Australian postcodes, which mostly all begin with a five, had the highest number of postcodes at the lower end of the pay scale.

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Adzuna CEO Raife Watson said Bowen and Gladstone’s strong result was due to recent business activity in the areas, including several new coal mining projects in the Bowen Basin which had a flow-on effect to the ports in Gladstone.

“We have not seen coal prices increase at this rate since 2011. In response, the Palaszczuk Government has issued new mining leases in the region and jobs growth in both mining and construction should continue as a result,” he said.

“The Gladstone Port will also reap the benefits of the global demand for coal, and jobs in logistics will increase steadily as exports ramp up.”

But despite its high wages, Gladstone’s housing market isn’t looking so positive — earlier this month, news.com.au reported that more than 80 per cent of homes in the area were selling at a loss according to new data released by CoreLogic.

In January 2013, houses in the centre of Gladstone were selling for an average of $595,000 but by January 2017, the average was down to $330,000 — a trend widely attributed to a construction downturn in the area.

However, Adzuna’s report also revealed job ads in the mining industry had increased 10 per cent over the past six months, while jobs in logistics more than doubled that figure at 22.84 per cent.

But Mr Watson said big cities still equalled higher wages.

“Our map shows that Australia’s capital cities provide the best opportunities for work at a higher rate of pay,” he said.

ACT postcodes starting with 26 took out second place with the average salary sitting at $103,752. Picture: Adzuna

“In saying this, our capital cities are becoming overpopulated and the quality of living is starting to diminish.

“If you focus on a career in healthcare, or in any of the STEM areas, there will be opportunities for you to move to regional areas of Australia and still have the opportunity to earn an above-average salary in a location without the traffic and exorbitant house prices.”

Mr Watson said one-third of current jobs would be replaced by automation before 2030, but that jobs in healthcare and IT were future-proof.

He said while a move outside of a capital city would probably lead to a lower salary, the gap was likely to be closed by an overall drop in the cost of living.

And he pointed out that while there were more jobs available in cities compared to regional areas, competition was much higher, so a tree change could actually improve an employee’s career trajectory.

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