Salary and benefits
‘Big is good.’’ There might be something in Mitre 10 Mega’s old television catchphrase that jobseekers should consider when deciding who to work for.
Data shows that for a profitable and sustainable salaried life, workers’ best option is a large company, not one of New Zealand’s plethora of small firms.
Recruitment agency Randstad compiles an annual list of the top
10 things workers want from employers. That data shows that on salary, career progression, job security, and work-life balance, larger employers have the edge.
But averages don’t tell the whole story. Big isn’t always good, and small can be beautiful. By and large, smaller size means, on average, smaller salaries.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Small Business fact sheet for 2016 laid out the stark truth that although 97 per cent of all businesses were small (fewer than
20 employees), they generated just
26 per cent of New Zealand’s GDP. The money is in the bigger end of town. So is the pay, especially for the driven employee aiming at securing a spot among the senior ranks, or even in the boardroom.
The average wage in 2014 was
$55,065 in companies with 20 or more employees, and $43,802 at smaller companies.
Fraser Hanson, the general manager of Innocent Packaging, a fast-growing business providing food and drinks packaging that can be composted, said: ‘‘We’re not paying everyone here six figures,