Have you ever desired to live in Australia? Does the multicultural environment that has experienced 26 consecutive years of spiralling growth? Does the idea of living in the fourth happiest country on the planet tickle your fancy? Australia has an addictive lifestyle of a carefree living, high-quality of life combined with a pleasant climate and dream beaches. With its cutting edge world-class education, Australia would be a good place to settle for you and your entire family. And we don’t stop there, Australia offers many opportunities for you to grow in your career. How much therefore is the average salary in Australia?
The average salary of a professional working in Australia is A$91,600 annually. The salaries range from a lower average of A$12,400 to a higher average range of A$405,000 annually. This salary includes benefits such as house and transport allowance.
However, the salaries vary with the different professional fields that Australia offers. The average wage per hour is A$44.
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Average Salary in Australia
Having known the average salary of the country you intend to relocate to, what does this mean for you? Will it be a smooth sail earning your living to fulfil your basic needs, occasionally having a luxurious lifestyle? Simply stated, in Australia, you will grow as a person, together with your family.
Fair enough? With the educational advancement and endless opportunities, Australia is a good country to settle in. There’s no doubt about it. Do you wish to settle fully in Australia? No problem!
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Almost every working person earns less than A$405,000 whereas 75% of the working population earn A$243,000 or less. Additionally, 50% of the workforce earns A$89,700 (median salary), while 24% of the employees take home A$46,000 or less.
The median salary is a representation of the middle salary scale value with half of the workforce earning below it, just as half of the workforce earns above it.
Being on the upper part of the composition means you will be able to live a comfortable life, occasionally tending to your luxuries.
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If your salary is more than the average and the median, it is safe to say you are a leading a comfortable lifestyle. On the other hand, if your average household income Australia is lower than both the average salary and median salary, you can work more to increase your salary range.
Earning an amount between the average and median salary would say things are a bit tough financially to fulfill your basic needs.
Your level of experience is one of the most essential factors in determining your salary. It is naturally inclined to be the more experience the higher the salary. Additionally, a professional with experience of five years or more tend to earn 36% more than their counterparts.
However, the salaries differ from one location to another. More to that, it will also differ mainly because of the different career fields.
Your level of education is a major determinant too. Higher education levels attract higher wages. For instance, an employee with an undergraduate degree earns more by 24% compared to employees with a certificate or diploma.
Gender should not necessarily have an effect in the pay scale, but male employees in Australia earn 8% more than the female employees.
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On average, employees in Australia receive 8% salary increment an average of 16 months. The salary increment additionally depends on the type of industry and the level of experience.
While one half of the employee receive annual bonuses, the other half report not to receive bonuses. The difference is brought by different career fields. For instance, those in finance get 3-6% bonus whereas those in transport, hospitality don’t receive bonuses.
There are different types of bonuses, such as: individual performance bonus, company performance bonus, goal attained bonuses, and even end of year bonuses.
More to that, employees in the government receive higher salaries than their private sector counterparts. Different professions earn different salaries annually on average.
For instance, an accountant earns on average earns A$64,700 whereas an accounting manager gets a hefty paycheck at A$118,000. Those in the lower scale are like cashiers who take home A$55,100 together with waiters at A$54,500. Nannies too are part of this category, earning an average household income Australia of A$59,600 annually.
Health professionals certainly are some of the highly paid employees. Laboratory technician earns A$72,800 while nurses take home A$73,300.
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Dietitian and dentists get higher paychecks at A$207,000 and A$214,000 respectively. Employees in top management also receive good salaries. A project manager earns A$104,000, a general manager earns A$167,000, a chief financial officer receives A$189,000 while chief executive officer receives a staggering A$204,000.
Employees in the construction industry are also well paid. A civil engineer on average earns A$86,000 while a construction project manager takes home A$111,000.
Safe, healthy and environment officers earn on average A$57,900 annually. Professionals in the technical sciences too receive better salaries. Engineers are part of this category. They include civil engineer, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, who on average receive A$82,300, A$92,800 and A$94,700 respectively.
Information and technology professionals are essential in the backbone of an economy, with the advancement in technology. Information technology manager leads this category, taking home A$135,000. A computer technician on average earns A$70,400 while a database administrator receives A$94,100. Not to forget network programmers and network engineer who earn A$84,200 and A$79,500 respectively.
Minimum Salary in Australia
Currently, the minimum salary in Australia is A$740.80 which translates to a minimum wage rate per hour of A$19.49. This is the lowest amount an employee should be paid as stipulated by the government, through the Fair Work Commission.
The minimum wage is set every year for employees in West Australian State System. Different agreements as laid down by the commission impact the minimum amount an employee should receive. Failure by the employer to meet the set wage conditions will attract consequences.
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The minimum wages are reassessed annually by the commission to ensure employees receive fair pay with respect to the prevailing economic market. Several factors come into consideration before determining the minimum salary in Australia. These factors include: wage rates for the adults, wage rates for the juniors, casual loadings, and piece rates. Piece rate means the employee get per unit of production.
Fir instance, the piece rate in a manufacturing industry can be the amount workers earn for every carton of products processed. On the other hand, in a farm, the piece rate translates to amount an employee will receive for every basket of fruits picked. The minimum salary is set to ensure even the least paid employees in the country can afford to cater for their basic needs without much struggle.
Average Income Household Australia
The average income household Australia earns about A$116,000 per annum. The top one in every five households earns twice this amount, translating to A$280,000 or more. On the other hand, the bottom one in every five households takes home on average about A$24,000. Simply put, while the bottom fifth take home a paltry 4% of all population income, the top 5% earn 48% of the total workforce income.
Households in the top margin earn twelve times than the lower income households. Using the Gini coefficient, current Australia income spread per household stands at 0.439. This means zero is the perfect equality, while 1 shows total inequality. Average household in Australia has a net wealth of A$1,022,200 whereas the top earning households have a net wealth of A$3,236,800.
Average Income Australia by Age
Age plays an essential factor in the distribution of salary. Age has a direct correlation with experience. The higher the salary. The average income in Australia by age is as outlined below. Late teens of age 18-20 earn A$1,850 monthly. The early 20’s, (21-24) year olds earn A$3,037 per month. The mid-’20s to the early ’30s, (25-34) earn A$4,774 monthly. The income is on an upward trend.
Mid 30’s to early 40’s (35-44) year olds earn A$5,912 per month. On the other hand, mid 40’s to early 50’s (45-54) year olds earn A$5,928 per month. This is the most prime age bracket, receiving the highest income. The income reduces narrowly for the mid 50’s to early 60’s (55-64) year olds, earning A$5,286 per month.
Some jobs pay better than others. For instance, managers receive higher weekly earnings compared to their counterparts. They receive on average $2424.50, with most averaging at 45 years. Sales workers received lower pay rates per week. They take home a paltry $735.90, most having an average of 33 years old. Most employees fall in the category of professionals, which includes several job fields that have special training in higher levels of education. Most of the workforce earn $1,751.40, with most of them averaging at 41 years.
One of the industries with the highest weekly earnings was mining. On the other hand, hospitality industry has one of the lowest weekly pay at $616.20 covering most staff at 30 years.
The above factors summarize the major determinants of salaries in the Australian economy. Understanding them will help you in navigating the best industry for you. It will also help you identify if you receive a fair share of the required salary compared to counterparts in your professional field.
