Salaries in the state's engineering sector are tipped to rise from next month as employers in the resources space gear up to take on contract and permanent staff to realise the industry's estimated $200 billion in projects.
Salaries in the state's engineering sector are tipped to rise from next month as employers in the resources space gear up to take on contract and permanent staff to realise the industry's estimated $200 billion in projects.
The latest quarterly survey by Ambit Engineering Recruitment shows that salaries in WA's resources sector remained flat for the past 10 months on the back of flat hiring activity.
However, current business activity has suggested that hiring levels will rise sharply in the next three months.
The survey showed that salaries levels for more than 150 jobs in the resources sector are at the same levels now, as they were in reviews conducted May 2009 and October 2009.
Remuneration levels over the 10-month period are significantly lower - up to 15 percent less - than the rates paid in August 2008, before the global financial crisis took effect.
However, 2010 has brought renewed confidence in Australia's resources sector, and with an estimated $200 billion in resources projects now scheduled, WA employers are expressing 'intentions to hire' - at rates suggesting the market is on the brink of resurgence.
Ambit chief executive Peter Acheson said that by next month, the company's Perth office will have twice as many jobs available as it had in April 2009.
While this number would bring Peoplebank's activity levels back to relatively normal, Acheson comments that the number of employers who are intending to hire, in the next quarter, will shift the market to higher-than-usual levels.
"One client, alone, is seeking to hire about 150 new staff in the next six months," Mr Acheson said.
"If the anticipated lift in hiring activities is sustained, we could see the local resource pool fully committed by mid-year - at which point we will be turning to our national and international database to supply skilled candidates, especially for the contract roles that make up nearly 80 percent of the sector's workforce.
"As a consequence, we are likely to see remuneration start climbing back to 2008 levels in the second half of this year."
However, Mr Acheson warns contractors to think before they leap into higher-paid contract roles.
"In 2008, the market saw instances of professionals breaking their contracts in order to gain pay increases of $1 or $2/hr in new roles. This group was among the first considered for retrenchments when the market turned down," he said.
But with labour market demand growing week by week, Mr Acheson sees a strong, long-term future for Perth's resources sector professionals.
"Some key projects - such as Gorgon Gas - have an estimated life of 10+ years - which means that we are likely to be just at the beginning of a sustained boom for the resources sector and will provide a flow-on effect for the broader WA economy."
