Ever wondered what job pays the most, or what your career earning potential might be? According to CareerBuilder UK and Economic Modelling Specialists Intl. (EMSI), aircraft pilots and flight engineers are Britain’s highest earning occupations with average pay per hour at £44.57, while bar staff are at the other end of the scale being paid £6.13 per hour.
However, over the course of a career, the biggest pay increases are experienced by ship and hovercraft officers who, on average, earn five times as much later in their career as to when they first start out.
The data also suggests that pay may be affecting job growth in certain sectors. For example, the number of bar staff jobs has dropped 4% since 2011, which could be due to the fact that on average they suffer from the lowest pay over the course of a career. Yet, the biggest job decreases are for landscape gardeners where a 7% drop was reported and whose average hourly pay only increases slightly over the course of their career starting at £7.30 and ending up at less than £9.00.
In contrast, property, housing and estate managers have experienced 16% job growth since 2011, supported by the fact that they fall into the top ten best paid jobs per hour in Britain. By the end of their career, those working in this sector can on average earn four times as much as when they first entered the industry.
Scott Helmes, Managing Director of CareerBuilder UK says “The statistics are really interesting for people who might be looking to take their first step onto the career ladder. Looking at the top 10 best paid jobs by average hourly rate there are a number of professions that don’t require significant upfront investment in training and qualifications, but still have significantly higher earning potential than other sectors.”
CareerBuilder has provided a breakdown of the top 10 best paid jobs ranked by the average hourly rate:
- Aircraft pilots and flight engineers - £44.57
- Air traffic controllers - £34.06
- Legal professionals - £32.45
- Medical practitioners - £30.18
- Dental practitioners - £28.44
- Brokers - £25.03
- Higher education teaching professionals - £23.32
- Train and tube drivers - £23.29
- Ship and hovercraft officers - £23.23
- Actuaries, economists and statisticians - £22.98
Dr Sanja Licina, Senior Director of Workforce Analytics at CareerBuilder, says: “Our analysis has revealed that those sectors experiencing growth are also, on average, offering the highest potential earnings. The fact that jobs in legal, medicine and dentistry make our top ten best paid jobs list might not come as a surprise. However, our data also finds that higher education teachers, or train and tube drivers, which are not considered to be well paid roles, are also in the top ten best salaries. In addition, these positions also see some of the biggest increases in pay, over a career.”
