IPC’s recently published biennial wage and salary survey for the EMS industry shows a cautious upturn in salary increases in 2011, compared to 2009. Reporting on data from 151 U.S. and Canadian EMS facilities, IPC Wage Rate & Salary Study for the North American EMS Industry 2010-2011 is a valuable tool for EMS companies to gauge their position in competing for the best talent in the industry.
The study’s findings reflect the current slow economic recovery since the end of the recession in June 2009. The unemployment rate for December 2011 stood at 8.5 percent, well below the 10 percent mark seen during the recession. Salary increases reported for 2011 average 2.5 percent for hourly positions, 2.3 percent for salaried positions, and 2.1 percent for management positions. By contrast, IPC’s salary study for 2009 reported average annual increases in the range of 1.7 to 1.9 percent.
Mean and median wages, salaries, bonuses and commissions are reported for 31 specific positions, including technical, administrative, management and sales positions. Commission rates for independent manufacturers’ representatives are also covered. The report presents wage and salary data by region and company size.
Benefit costs in 2010 averaged 21.8 percent of total wages, a slight decrease from the 22.7 percent average seen in 2008. Most of the companies that participated in the survey provide retirement benefits to their employees. In 2010 and 2011, 401k plans were offered by 82 percent of those companies, up from 75 percent in 2008–2009. The study also found that all of the companies provide some form of health insurance to their employees. However, compared to the IPC study in 2009, the 2011 report shows a reduction in the percent of premiums paid by the companies for their employees for certain types of health insurance.
For the first time, the study covered measurement of employee satisfaction. Sixty-nine percent of the respondents formally measure employee satisfaction. Of those, about two thirds found a direct relationship between employee satisfaction and the implementation of flexible time and personal time off (PTO) policies.
IPC member companies that participated in the study receive IPC Wage Rate & Salary Study for the North American EMS Industry 2010-2011 at no charge. Other companies may purchase the study for $475 (IPC member discounted price) or $950 (standard industry price). For more information or to purchase the report, visit www.ipc.org/wage-and-salary-report.
For more information about IPC’s industry compensation studies or to participate in future studies, contact Sree Bhagwat, IPC market research manager, at +1 330-677-5563 or SreeBhagwat@ipc.org.
IPC (www.IPC.org) is a global trade association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 3,100 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2.02 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, N.M.; Arlington, Va.; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; Bangalore, India; and Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing, China.