Experience pays

The building services sector is constantly asking why it struggles to recruit enough high-calibre graduates to its ranks. Would improving general awareness about the role of the services engineer help? Could paying higher salaries to young people entering the profession be the answer? Well, if the results of this year’s salary survey are anything to go by, the answer to the latter question at least is probably “yes”.

The findings show that, while engineers in senior roles can command ever higher salaries – say, £65,000 for an operations director working for a contractor in central London – employees at junior levels have only experienced meagre rises in earnings over the past 12 months. For example, salaries have increased by just 0.2% for a junior electrical contracts manager and by 1.6% for a junior consulting engineer.

The reason for the disparity is simple. Employers are convinced it’s vital to get the right person for the top job – and they’re willing to dig deep to do so. In the long term, this is often money well spent and where the work is project-led, employers can include any significant cost hikes in the initial budget.

But unluckily for those just starting out, the same rules do not apply. “The industry is currently very buoyant and building services remains a candidate-led market, with shortages of people across the UK, at all levels,” explains Mike McNally, building services manager at specialist recruitment consultancy Hays Building Services.

But he adds that even though they are competing with each other to attract the best people, “employers have largely avoided tremendous salary hikes at junior level, by focusing on the overall benefits package and the opportunities provided by the role itself”.

Reliable contractors are also much in demand, particularly following the costly delays associated with recent high-profile projects such as Wembley. This is where the largest salary increases have been witnessed over the past 12 months. Commercial and operations managers have enjoyed increases of up to 5.9%.

Looking forward

Over the next 12 months Hays does not foresee the situation changing greatly. If anything, the company expects the gap to widen, with senior professionals being offered even higher salaries. Many employers are still guilty of only considering the short term – the next project or the next job – rather than their future workforce. And given that 73% of employers stated that they had experienced problems recruiting over the past 12 months, this area needs addressing.

Keith Robertson, senior consultant at Hays, says: “Although the market is buoyant and we see no sign of this abating, we have to consider how much longer it can sustain an increase in salaries and benefits. Whilst it isn’t yet commonplace, a recent move saw a graduate with under one year’s experience changing jobs for a tremendous £7,000 increase. If this continues, we are likely to see the ‘counter offer culture’ grow – with employers trying to outbid each other to secure particular candidates. This will be to the detriment of the industry.”

Hays also expects the numbers of workers from overseas to continue to increase over the next 12 months. “Employers are becoming more open to this option given the scarcity of strong candidates. A good standard of English and exposure to CIBSE standards will dictate how successful workers from overseas are,” says Hays’ section manager, Andy Cook.

Key skills

Following the government’s pledge that all new homes in England have to be carbon neutral by 2016, building regulations are being revised to improve energy efficiency. Tom McGuane, Hays’ manager, says, “We have already seen a rise in the number of consultancies looking to recruit employees with experience or qualifications in sustainability, low-carbon and renewable energy technologies. Given the government’s increased focus in this area, we expect demand for these skills to grow.”

Cook also acknowledges that, “knowledge of the latest Part L Building Regulations are now a big requirement for employees”.

Chartered status for design engineers and surveyors is also highly sought after. “It remains quite rare to find candidates with qualifications, which means that they are in a strong position and can make higher demands on their prospective employer. Membership of an institution such as CIBSE can definitely pay off for candidates,” says James Bakewell, consultant at Hays.

We have also seen an increase in employers looking for candidates with a commercial understanding, so that they can take a role in business development.

Candidates who are skilled in one discipline and possess a significant understanding of another are in demand. For example, qualified mechanical engineers who possess a strong knowledge of electrical engineering are very employable.

Benefits

It is perhaps not surprising that the search for a higher salary came top of the list when employees were asked what factors influenced them when looking for a new job. But wanting a new challenge followed closely – indicating that for many employees the role itself is almost as important as the salary. Flexible working was also a popular option – a new focus for many employees in recent years. Given that we have seen loyalty levels reduce and the average lifespan for work with an employer diminish, the focus on the overall benefits package continues to grow in prominence.

In our survey, employees showed a high level of satisfaction with their current employer, with 43% of employees willing to recommend their current employer. Twenty-seven percent of respondents stated that they definitely would not recommend their employer. This group said salary, career development, training and benefits were key issues, which would tempt them to stay if they could be resolved.

Louise Payne, a consultant at Hays, points out: “Employers now appear to be more willing to invest in training. Increasingly they are looking to CIBSE for training accreditation and are prepared to spend more in order to up-skill their own employees.” And flexible benefits, which employees can pick and choose from, are growing in popularity. For example, the ability to buy and sell holiday allowance is becoming more commonplace.

It is interesting to look at what benefits are most commonly offered by employers, compared with the benefits that candidates consider are important to them. On a positive note, pension, life insurance, 25 days’ annual leave and non-financial training support feature on the top five of both lists. This demonstrates that employers understand their employees’ needs.

However, while 55% of employees considered that flexible working was important to them when looking for a job, only 33% of employers offered it.

Working hours

In our survey, 79% of respondents stated that they regularly work overtime. Of them, 32% stated that they were happy to do it and that it was their own choice. Indeed, only 8% stated that they were always unhappy about working beyond their contracted hours. Interestingly, 54% don’t get compensated for this overtime. Workload was given as the main reason for working overtime.

Despite the fact that the majority of respondents work overtime, they are largely happy with their work-life balance. While 48% rated it as good, very good or excellent, only 5% rated it as very poor.

Recruitment

Our survey revealed that 73% of employers experienced problems recruiting, which is largely attributed to a shortage of suitable candidates. Salary and competition from other employers also ranked highly among the reasons for recruitment problems.

Retention

Staff retention is also a prevalent issue for employers, with 42% reporting problems. Employers largely attribute this to career development opportunities and salary levels. Loyalty is increasingly desired by employers as a key attribute. “Given the pressure on employers to retain good staff, there has been a slight increase in counter offers,” Hays consultant Emma Quinn says. Employers are therefore very wary about employing people who have moved a number of times and who have shown little commitment to their previous employers.