IV - The Rewards of Work: Earnings and Satisfaction

Summary

In this chapter we review what the graduates earned in the various occupations discussed in the previous chapter. Salary is, of course, only one of the returns most people hope for from their work. The scope of the work itself, the contacts and opportunities it provides, and the social usefulness of the job are all things which are for many people as important, often more important, than the financial reward. However, for almost everyone, earning is a basic necessity, and for many the main incentive towards working, and for the survey worker it is the only objective measure of progress. We also review in this chapter the information the graduates gave about their satisfaction with their work. This is not capable of objective measure, but to some extent it indicates the feelings of the graduates about their work as a whole.

Current earnings

If we wish to make comparisons of the earnings of men in different employment groups, some account should be taken of the variable amounts of additional emoluments which accompany basic pay. Most of the data on current earnings is given in terms of a ‘total’ value which includes the value of any fringe benefits. We also refer later to ‘basic earnings’. These terms are defined below.

(a) Total earnings. This consists of basic salary before tax, plus the value of any additional emoluments. Ideally the total value of earnings should be taken as the total cost to the employer, i.e. it should include all money paid by the employer into any superannuation fund and for any allowances and non-cash benefits. The actual cost to the employer of non-cash benefits is, however, very difficult to ascertain, and beyond the scope of a postal survey of this nature. The benefits vary widely in type and value, and the majority of employees have little idea of their real cost. Most of them, however, have some idea of the value to themselves, and in Question 4, Section C, we asked the graduates to give this value (‘the net amount of salary you would expect to compensate you if the benefits were not available’).