Vancouver, BC, Sept. 25, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As indicated in HR Tech Group’s annual BC Tech Salary Survey, released today, British Columbia’s tech sector is experiencing an incredibly fast-moving compensation market, with cities such as Vancouver paying some of the highest rates in the country for high demand tech jobs.
Vancouver’s median Research and Development and Software salaries are now higher than both Toronto and Montreal.
At a national level, the tech industry is seeing higher increase budgets than all other industries reporting. In BC’s tech sector there has been a steep increase in salaries this year, with people in the same roles experiencing a median salary increase of 3.7%. This salary increase is much greater for some role levels, with entry-level employees and specialists seeing 5.1% and 4.7% increases respectively. The Digital Media / Gaming sub-sector was particularly hot, with median salaries increasing by 6.6%.
Roles with the most drastic increases in compensation this year include: Entry level Software Developer, Senior UI/UX Designer, Technical Customer Support Manager, Human Resources Specialist or Manager, SEO/Digital Marketing Specialist and Territory Representative.
“BC has become a major force in the tech industry, not only in Canada but across North America, and we are seeing compensation trends reflect that,” said Stephanie Hollingshead, CEO of the HR Tech Group. “Our industry has a globally competitive workforce that is continuing to drive economic value for our province.”
From an entry-level perspective, one area of particular interest is Engineering. The survey finds that BC companies are paying recent engineering graduates 8.5% higher than the national average.
In line with this increasing compensation market, anticipated headcount growth in 2020 across BC’s tech sector is sitting at 13%, with subsectors like Cleantech expecting 19% growth and Digital Media / Gaming expecting headcount growth of 18%.
“The BC Tech Salary Survey reflects the good, family supporting jobs the tech sector provides to people,” said Bruce Ralston, Minister of Jobs, Trade and Technology. “It’s great to see British Columbians experiencing the benefits of a strong, sustainable economy and that B.C.’s economic strength is paying dividends.”
The 2019 BC Tech Salary Survey, conducted for HR Tech Group in partnership with Mercer, reports salary and incentive data from 134 organizations and 20,310 individual employees – an increase of 11% in organization participation compared to 2018. The survey reports compensation data on 194 jobs, with all but one job increasing in sample size this year.
Three new jobs were added in 2019:
- Customer Success Manager
- Sales Operations Manager
- CFX Artist - Intermediate
With the industry experiencing voluntary turnover of 13.2%, slightly higher than the national average of 12.1%, the survey also reports that perks and workplace benefits are heavily relied upon to gain a competitive edge when attracting top talent to BC. Workplace benefits like flexible work hours, work from home options, and fully equipped game rooms and flex spaces are now provided by the vast majority of tech organizations, and benefits such as paid time off to volunteer are quickly increasing in prevalence and being considered by many others.
For more details and specific salary figures, purchase a full version of the BC Tech Salary Survey online at hrtechgroup.com. Learn more about the BC Tech Salary Survey, here.
About the BC Tech Salary Survey
HR Tech Group, in partnership with Mercer, releases the annual BC Tech Salary Survey. For more than 20 years this Survey has been the definitive resource for the high-tech sector in BC. While the survey is based in BC, the data is relevant for all Canadian high-tech markets, with several national and international organizations participating.
About HR Tech Group
HR Tech Group is an association of human resources professionals employed in BC tech companies. The group produces the leading BC Tech Salary Survey and provides new and benchmark data that keeps members up to speed on local business practices in tech. HR Tech Group serves over 150 mid to large member companies in all tech sectors including ICT, film/ VFX, digital media, cleantech and life sciences.