The latest issue of IABC’s printed Communication World (or CW, which now receives top billing over the full name) reports on the results of a recent member survey about salaries and job satisfaction. Generally, the 3,370 respondents indicated we’re satisfied with our salaries and our current organizations.
Should we be? Reading the details, we find that the median base salary for members in U.S. chapters is $75,000 US, and for those in Canadian chapters, it’s $61,695 US. Hmm. Are we being too nice to demand the raise it appears we’re due?
I also found it interesting that the median self-employed hourly rate was $100 US (the mean or average was $116 US), in sharp contrast to the agency hourly billable rate of $165 US (mean of $204 US). I hope this encourages companies to give talented and qualified freelancers the opportunity to quote on work!
By the way, the summary said four per cent of respondents indicated they were “sole practitioners,” but seven per cent were “self-employed” at the end of 2006. I am not sure what this means!
This is interesting info. I hope you can share some of the results at the HPCA pricing meeting. I’ve never understood why people are so secretive about how much they earn. It seems to favour management to keep employees/service providers in the dark!
Yes, of course I’ll share this with HPCA members. Also of interest are the fee guidelines at http://www.writers.ca, where corporate/business writing rates are listed as ranging from $50 (which seems awfully low) to $125 per hour.
The PWAC rates are only a rough guideline. Because it’s a national organization, there are vast regional differences between what people will pay. I expect that someone working on PEI or Newfoundland would find it a challenge to make more than $50 an hour, while some Toronto or Montreal corporate types might be managing to get $125. Because of this sweeping range across the country, I rarely find the PWAC rates helpful. Also, there are many newbies who join PWAC for professional development and don’t charge high rates at the start, yet their rates come up in the surveys. One of the benefits of HPCA is it reflects the regional realities of where we live and work.
Good point, Gloria – $50 is low for Toronto but may be the going rate in other provinces. I wonder if IABC chapters in the Atlantic provinces have any data? I’ll look into it.