16 August Cost of Civil Staff increases 40% in 6 months August 16, 2022By ICI Administrator General 0 At the recent CCF Procurement conference a senior Member of NSW based Contractor stated that they had seen an increase of wages for good project engineers go from $160,000 to $220,000 in the space of 6 months. This equates to a pure 40% increase in staff costs. What can be considered more alarming is that these increases were universally agreed by attendees as being the norm. As a Civil Contractor, absorbing these cost increases is not sustainable. Salary increases like this eat into the profitability of your business. How are successful companies keeping staff? When your teams focus is purely on their pay packet, retaining staff becomes a challenge – particularly in times of a skills shortage as is the case now. The only option for you to retain your team is to pay them more. One of the most common questions we get here at ICI is How are other successful companies keeping staff, what are they doing differently? Don’t buy them. Bargain for them and Build them Imagine you are negotiating for a new hire, or you’re talking to a current team member who is thinking of accepting a higher paying job offer, Imagine if you could change that conversation away from ‘I’ll give you an additional $10k per year’. Imagine changing that to ‘Yes we pay market rates, but we also invest in a Professional Growth Plan to help advance your Civil career in the long term’ Expand your retention tools ICI gives you the tools you need to stop having to ‘buy’ team members. We give you the ability to bargain, the ability to build and create a strong team – creating an emotional attachment to your organisation because you have invested in them. You didn’t just pay them a salary, you invested in them as a person. And that’s a powerful weapon when building a team. That’s what we do at ICI. We give you the tools you need to attract, retain and build your teams. We focus on learning pathways, on personal recognition, and upskilling. The end result is a team Member who is more committed to you as an organisation, and secondly a stronger team overall. Find out more about partnering with ICI at our Contractors information page. Lee Gabbett General Manager Related Posts Civil Construction Project Management – Tips for Success Civil construction project management is a combination of cost, time, quality and risk management that enables cost-effective completion of projects within their constraints and to the agreed quality outcomes The Institute of Civil Infrastructure expands into Queensland The Institute of Civil Infrastructure has partnered with CCF QLD to launch the industry’s own continual professional development program for civil managers. The Institute of Civil Infrastructure announces new CEO The Institute of Civil Infrastructure (ICI Australia) today announced the appointment of Lee Gabbett as its new Chief Executive Officer, taking over from David Castledine. An Extraordinary Opportunity Now Available to the Tasmanian Civil Industry Civil Contractors in Tasmania can now access courses from the Institute of Civil Infrastructure (ICI) courses using Keystone Tasmania funding. Waste Management in Civil Projects: A Guide to Minimising Risk and Impact If you're in the civil and construction industry, you're probably aware of how crucial waste management is in any civil project. It's not just about keeping things tidy; it's about minimising environmental impact, reducing costs, and staying on the right side of the law. In this article, we'll give you the lowdown on all things waste management, CEMP, and project risks. The Institute of Civil Infrastructure begins partnership with Western Australia The Institute has continued to grow across the country with an exciting new partnership with the Civil Contractors Federation Western Australia. As the peak body for civil construction in WA, the opportunity for ICI to partner with CCF WA is a great way to support the men and women of the industry in their professional development. Comment (0) Comments are closed.