Nairobi Star (Nairobi)
Timothy Munuku
7 November 2009
Nairobi — THE best paying jobs are still in the financial sector, a new survey has revealed.
According to the 2009 Pricewaterhouse Coopers National Human Resource Survey, CEOs in this sector are the best paid with salaries and benefits going up to Sh3.9 million a month.
This is an increase of 55 per cent since 2007 when a similar survey conducted indicated that it cost an average of Sh2.5 million to get a CEO in the sector.
"This figure doesn't show the CEOs' salary but the entire cost of employment (CoE) for that CEO position in a month," said PwC Country Senior Partner Kuria Muchiru.
Muchiru said the survey indicated a growing disparity between the incomes of the higher and lower paid persons in the country with those occupying senior positions earning many times more than those in positions.
"Kenya has one of the highest disparities between the rich and the poor. The difference was 300 times in 2007 and this has increased to 400 times in 2009," said Muchiru.
According to the two-year survey, the average cost of employing a Chief Executive position is Sh1.4 million per month up 1.1 million in 2007. The lowest paid CEO is in the state corporations and government parastatals where the highest paid is Sh1,033,292.
In the finncial sector, the lowest paid management position is the audit assistant who earns an average of Sh20,961 and the least is a project manager in the hospitality industry.
In the non-management positions, the highest paid per sector is in the insurance sector where a cashier can earn Sh238,548 and a headwaiter in the hospitality industry earning on average Sh50,600 per month.
services where a receiptionist an Muchiru said the cost of employing CEOs across all sectors increased by 30.7 per cent since 2007 whereas the economy only grew by 1.7 per cent in 2008.
"It would therefore appear that the CEOs' remuneration has outpaced economic growth," read a section of the survey.
This simply means that CEOS are getting paid more money than they are making.
The absolute lowest paid position is the room steward(non management) in the professional services sector at Sh9,450 per month. This is up from Sh8,001 per month for the cleaner/janitor/tea lady in the manufacturing sector in the 2007 survey.
In the 2007 survey, the highest paid position was 315 times higher than the lowest paid. In the 2009 survey, the difference is 414 times higher!
The survey findings come against a background of tough economic conditions characterized by the global economic downturn and increasing inflation in the country.
According to the survey, those in the management position earned an annual average increment of 10.899per cent compared to 10.3 per cent for non-management positions. This is against an annual average inflation rate of 22.68 per cent.
"The Survey analyses the trends in policies and addresses current Human Resources issues facing organisations. As we manage through this downturn, the success or failure of people strategies will determine which organisations come out the other side as the big brands and top employers," said Muchiru.
Up to 39 per cent of the participants said they resorted to retrenchment as a means of adjusting to the challenging business environment.
Human resources practitioners reported facing increased pressure for to increase salaries due to the high average high inflation of 22.68 per cent as at September 2008.
Another key challenge facing today's HR managers 'Generation Y' the fastest growing segment of the workforce comprising youth in their 20s to mid-30s.
"This group wants success now, respect, challenges, training and exciting work, flexible working hours and recognition for their efforts," explains Muchiru. "These people are not like the previous generation an most wish to retire at age 40 having held about six jobs," he added.
Muchiru added that Generation Y is the future of the corporate scene and human resource practitioners must both listen to them and find a way to handle them or risk losing out.
"Smart businesses - even when things are tough - are focused on retaining their most valuable people. The culture and internal brand of a business will go some of the way to doing this. HR practitioners also need to be adept at doing more with less, to engage and develop key employees. But at the end of the day you need a reference for employee compensation reviews, cost of employment planning and to ensure market competitiveness," said Muchiru.
The PwC survey covered 110 organisations from across 10 sectors which included professional services, insurance, trade, hospitals, health and medical services, hoteliers and state corporations and the public service. It addresses the effects of the current economic and political conditions, the rising inflation rate and the impact of the new employment laws and legislation.
According to the survey the global economic recession has resulted in a 'brain gain' with many skilled professionals returning from the developed and developing economies.
An estimated 8,000 Kenyans in the diaspora applied for jobs in Kenya but only 300 were successful in getting absorbed into the local job market.
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