Two-thirds of finance professionals still expect a pay rise

A brand new study from the UK’s leading independent job board, CV-Library, reveals that two-thirds (66.7%) of finance professionals still expect to receive a pay rise from their employer in the next 12 months, despite the country going into a recession as a result of Covid-19.

The job board surveyed 1,100 UK professionals, to understand their perceptions of their career over the next year. Interestingly, workers in the finance sector scored well above the national average; where a smaller of 41.3% of Brits said they anticipated a pay rise.

In fact, the data reveals that finance professionals are the second most likely to expect an increase in pay, followed by these key sectors:

1. Legal (80%)
2. Finance (66.7%)
3. Electronics (66.7%)
4. Property (66.7%)
5. Medical (64.7%)
6. Marketing (60%)
7. Catering (57.1%)
8. IT (55.2%)
9. Education (51.2%)
10. Social care (50%)

Interestingly, CV-Library’s job market data reveals that salaries for new finance jobs dropped by 2.2% month-on-month in July, but rose by 5.5% year-on-year. In addition to this, the survey shows that only 20.8% believe they’ll be offered a promotion during this time. However, this is still higher than the national average of 18.7%.

Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library comments: “It’s understandable that finance professionals are looking to regain some of their lost income in the coming months, particularly if they’ve been placed on furlough. Indeed, the finance sector has been greatly affected by the coronavirus outbreak; what with people defaulting on loans and taking mortgage holidays; so many businesses may be unable to offer an increase in pay.

“However, it’s important that you still do what you can to make your employees feel valued in another way. This can be done by offering better training opportunities, initiating a reward system for hard work or by promoting a supportive company culture.”

Furthermore, the findings show that, of the finance professionals surveyed that are currently unemployed, 48.5% of them are confident that they’ll secure a new role in the next three months. Plus, a further 36.4% expect to find a new position within three to six months.

Biggins continues: “The data clearly shows that finance professionals still have a great deal of confidence in the job market. While we are seeing an increase in the number of job opportunities available, job seekers may find that it takes longer than expected to find the perfect role. However, if you’re looking to hire, it’s imperative that you streamline your recruitment process and advertise your new roles effectively in order to attract new talent.”