Six figure juniors, $250k seniors: Tech’s median wage towers over everyone else, Employment Hero SmartMatch report finds

Hefty salaries, big bonuses and the nation’s highest hourly rates commanded by tech workers have been revealed, with even junior staff earning six-figure pay packets.

Tech workers earn $20 more an hour than workers in other industries.

Australian tech workers are earning $20 more an hour than workers in other industries, with a median hourly wage of $63.50.

That’s 50 per cent more than in other industries, where the median is $42.20, according to Employment Hero’s December SmartMatch report, which analysed the verified pay slips of 1.1 million Australian workers.

That $63.50 an hour rate, in a regular 38-hour working week, equates to about $125,000 a year.

But that was just half of what senior employees in the tech industry were demanding, said Ting Wang, chief executive of cryptocurrency exchange Coinstash.

Ting Wang, chief executive of cryptocurrency exchange Coinstash.

“Even when recruiting for more junior roles, candidates are demanding a six-figure salary.

“For senior roles, the base expectation among jobseekers in the industry is $250,000 plus superannuation and bonuses, so that’s what you need to be prepared to pay for talent at that level,” he said.

Competition was fierce and candidates weren’t shy about making bold requests, and often were “pretty transparent” when it came to sharing competing offers of employment, Mr Wang said.

Coinstash’s salaries were about 20 per cent higher than those in non-tech industries, he said.

“So yes, it is harder to compete than in other industries, but the expectation to perform on an individual level is also much higher.”

SuperAPI co-founder Sam Richardson said his company had begun to offer additional benefits to stay competitive, offering Christmas and New Year’s leave above the usual annual leave requirements.

According to the report, tech workers saw a month-on-month wage growth of 3.7 per cent in December and 7.9 per cent year-on-year growth in employment. After tech workers, the construction and trades services industry was the second highest paid with a median of $52.60, representing growth of 6.9 per cent over the past 12 months. Healthcare followed with a median of $47.50, then manufacturing and logistics at $42.30, and retail, hospitality and tourism at $34.60.

SuperAPI co-founder and chief technology officer Sam Richardson.

Employment Hero co-founder Ben Thompson.

Employment Hero co-founder and chief economist Ben Thompson said the data showed tech and science had “consistently outperformed the rest of the market” for wage and employment growth over the past 18 months.

“This wage growth makes sense, given the tech sector contributes $167bn to the economy, equivalent to 8.5 per cent of Australia’s total GDP, according to the Tech Council of Australia,” he said. “As Australia’s largest sector behind mining and banking, I anticipate this growth to trend upwards as the industry continues to mature and create more valuable employment opportunities for Australians.”

Australia’s most populous state commanded the highest pay, with NSW workers on a median of $43.20, up by 4.9 per cent in the past 12 months. Trailing behind them were those in the ACT and Queensland, where the median was $42.60 and $42.50 respectively, representing growth of 4.6 per cent and 5.3 per cent.

Workers in the Northern Territory followed at $42.30, up 1.5 per cent, then Victoria at $42, representing 4.1 per cent growth; Western Australia at $41.80 with 2.6 per cent growth; and South Australia at $40 and 4.1 per cent growth.

Tasmania had the lowest paid workers, according to the data, with a median of $37.40, representing 0 .6 per cent growth.

Millennials were the highest paid, with 35 to 44-year-olds earning a median of $50.80, up 4.7 per cent across the past year, while Gen X received the largest pay increase across the same period, rising 5.5 per cent to $50.70.

Over-55s were the next highest paid group, with a median of $45, followed by early Gen Z and late millennials aged 25 to 34 who were on a median of $42.10, up 3.5 per cent.

The middle cohort of Gen Zs aged 18 to 24 were on a median of $34.60 while their younger counterparts, aged 14 to 17, were on a median of $19.40. The groups received a 3.1 per cent and 3 per cent increase, respectively, over the past 12 months.

Seek’s advertised salary index, which will come out on Wednesday, found wages for information and communication technology roles rose 1.6 per cent over the quarter, compared with 0.7 per cent for all other industries.

Originally published as Six figure juniors, $250k seniors: Tech’s median wage towers over everyone else, Employment Hero SmartMatch report finds