Just over half (51%) of recruitment consultants and managers are satisfied with their pay and reward, while 24% are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied and 24% are dissatisfied, according to new research published today by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) in partnership with Indeed.

Planning for growth: attract and retain talent for your recruitment business gives an insight to the motivations, wants and needs of consultants and managers so that recruitment businesses leaders can benchmark their employee offering against their peers. The report shows:

• More than half of all recruitment consultants and managers (52%) received a pay rise between April 2014 and April 2015
• Average pay rise for recruiters in 2014/15 was 4.9%, up from 3.7% in 2013/14
• Employees that report satisfaction with pay and benefits have on average seen 7.5 staff leave their organisation in the last year, compared to 8.6 people for those reporting dissatisfaction
• The research shows that men earn 6% more than women in terms of basic salary, and there is a 14% difference in overall earnings.

The report also includes average salary and bonus data by length of service and by sector.

REC Chief Executive Kevin Green says: “It’s a great time to work in the recruitment industry. Many consultants and managers have seen pay raises and bonuses over the last two years. We forecast 18% industry growth over the next two years so the good times are set to continue.

“For business leaders the focus has to be on attracting and retaining talented people so they can take advantage of the opportunities available. Our research describes what motivates recruiters, and it’s clear that it’s not just about pay - they want progression and the benefits of working in a meritocratic industry, as well as the social and cultural perks. So the challenge for recruitment leaders is to make their businesses great places to work.

“We need more people to see recruitment as a career of choice. As an industry we need to educate people about what we do, why it’s important, and the kind of rewards that are on offer to hardworking recruiters. We also have to do more to reduce the gender pay gap. As the people advising the business community on fair recruitment, we absolutely need to practice what we preach and lead the way on gender equality.” 

Gerard Murnaghan, VP EMEA, Indeed, said:  “More and more people are looking for jobs and for business leaders this puts extra emphasis on the need to reduce turnover of staff. Skills shortages are already having an impact and as the UK economy expands we can expect businesses to come under more pressure when it comes to finding and hiring people. Never has it been more important for employers to attract quality candidates to the positions which help them drive revenue and growth for their businesses.

“The data in this report, which includes Indeed salary data, suggests that the recruitment industry is improving salaries and packages with market growth. We hope this research will help recruitment leaders to benchmark themselves again the competition and therefore make intelligent decisions about what to offer to help attract and retain talented people.”