Two thirds of engineering professionals place a ‘good salary’ as their top career priority

January saw application rates soar by a staggering 74.8% across the engineering sector, suggesting that many job hunters are on the lookout for their next opportunity.

With this in mind, CV-Library, the UK independent job site, sought to reveal what professionals value most in a job, with a good salary (67.5%) and friendly colleagues (46.3%) topping the list.



The survey of over 1,200 workers revealed that almost half (41.9%) of engineering professionals are unhappy in their current roles.

This job dissatisfaction could be one of the driving factors behind last month’s hike in application rates.

When asked to share what they believe to be the biggest contributing factors to their own workplace happiness, professionals revealed that their top career priorities include:

* A good salary – 67.5%
* Friendly colleagues – 46.3%
* Room for progression – 45%
* Great company culture – 41.3%
* Learning new skills – 23.8%
* A nice boss – 18.8%
* Good location close to home – 11.3%
* Interesting daily responsibilities – 15%
* Flexible working opportunities – 8.8%
Good workplace perks – 5%

Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library, comments:“Candidates are storming the job market like never before and it’s clear that many are searching for roles with a strict set of criteria in mind.

“As such, it’s important that businesses are offering the full package. But this doesn’t just mean fair salaries and workplace perks. A great company culture and a friendly workforce should also be a priority.”

What’s more, when comparing these factors with data from February 2016, the findings suggest that that there has been a shift in the career priorities of UK professionals.

In fact, the job role and its responsibilities was the number one career priority for workers two years ago (54.4%), shortly followed by salary (45.6%).

Biggins concludes:“It’s interesting to see this shift in career priorities, with professionals no longer placing as much importance on the role itself. It’s definitely important to enjoy what you do and this should always be a priority when moving jobs. That said the move is not surprising given ongoing economic uncertainty, as today’s professionals seek financial stability.”