Articles
Gender gap: Male engineers and technicians have salaries which are almost 20% higher
I’m no economist, granted, but I’ve always been especially confused by the basic laws of supply and demand when it comes to engineering. The perplexity is such: if the profession is afflicted by chronic skills shortages, as is claimed by just about every major company and institution, then why aren’t engineers better paid? Lack of supply should equal greater financial reward, surely?
There’s bound to be a number-cruncher somewhere who can enlighten me on such matters. My hunch is that it probably has something to do with the unassuming nature of most engineers and a natural reticence to push themselves forward during salary negotiations. Job satisfaction trumps financial reward, it would appear. Whatever the reason, the harsh fact remains that engineers earn far less than those in other comparably educated occupations.
This is a long-standing historical problem, and is certainly a detrimental factor when it comes to attracting new recruits into the profession. I bet that 99 out of 100 graduates would expect to earn more if they went into the City than they would if they became engineers. And they would probably be right.
But there are tentative signs that things are getting better. A recent survey from the Engineering Council, covered in greater detail on page 6 of this issue, has revealed that the income of professionally registered engineers over the past three years has increased well above the national average. Indeed, a chartered engineer can now expect to earn £63,000 a year – up 14.5% since 2010, when the survey was last carried out. Meanwhile, incorporated engineers and engineering technicians have also seen their pay shoot up dramatically over that time – to £45,500 and £40,000 respectively. These are median averages, remember, so the figures can be skewed by a few high earners at the top end of the scale. But on the whole, the statistics are a step in the right direction.
That’s until you get to the section on gender, though. If the profession as a whole thinks it has been hard done by in terms of wages, then women engineers can feel particularly aggrieved. The survey shows that the median basic income for male registered engineers and technicians is 19.7% higher than that of their female counterparts. The income gap persists across all age groups – female registered engineers and technicians consistently demonstrate a lower median basic income than men.
This, frankly, is an embarrassing state of affairs, and a poor reflection on the profession. The whys and wherefores of gender imbalance within engineering are complex and multilayered, and are explored in detail across several pages in this issue. The articles outline several ongoing efforts to attract more women engineers, most of which have had dubious levels of success. It’s hardly surprising, really. Equal pay might help.
• This issue also contains a feature on additive layer technologies, looking at how aerospace firms are starting to ‘print’ metal components such as wing spars. It’s the first in a series of articles on advanced manufacturing in the run-up to an IMechE conference on Smarter Factories. The event, to be held in June, will focus on developments in 3D printing, as well as next-generation subtractive machining technologies, and the digitisation of factory environments. Please go to smarterfactories.com to register for details.