Two-thirds of OHS professionals either like or love their jobs and are not interested in looking at new career opportunities, according to a recent salary survey.
It also found that just 9 per cent are actively seeking a new role and only 26 per cent want an increase in salary - making it harder for organisations to lure OHS professionals into new roles.
"Organisations will be required to adopt innovative ways to attract and retain top candidates," said Duane Tonkin, managing director of National Safety Recruitment, which conducted the survey of 556 organisations across 26 industries.
"With the majority of OHS professionals more concerned with career progression and a genuine commitment to safety and environmental management as opposed to chasing significantly higher salaries, employers are going to have to work a lot harder to demonstrate their commitment".
Half the respondents indicated that career progression would be the main reason to move on from their existing role, while 86 per cent would be seeking a salary increase of up to 20 per cent in another job.
In today's labour market, it is common practice for good OHS professionals to be seeking between a 10 to 20 per cent increase in TFR (Total Fixed Remuneration), said Matthew Annear, operations manager for National Safety Recruitment.
"In such a tight labour market and ever increasing demand for qualified, culturally suited OHS professionals, we have seen in recent times the pool of contractors dry up significantly to less than 13 per cent of the active market," he said.
"These contractors are able to demand inflated hourly rates to fill short-medium-term skills shortages across all sectors."
The survey also found that 92 per cent of respondents hold a Diploma qualification or higher, and it is "of paramount importance that individuals seeking to climb the career/salary ladder up-skill in this area", said Annear.
"There are a multitude of options available in both the private and institutional sectors for OHS professionals obtain TAFE level and tertiary qualifications, with credibility weighed heavily towards tertiary level qualifications offered through the institutional sector."
The survey also found that 87 per cent of OHS professionals are in a permanent capacity, 77 per cent of companies pay only the standard 9 per cent super contribution while 39 per cent receive a car or car allowance.
The key salary findings of the survey included:
- 90 per cent of OHS graduates/administrators earn a total salary package between $30,000 to $75,000
- 37 per cent of OHS/EHS advisors/coordinators/consultants earn a total salary package between $75,001 to $120,000
- 53 per cent of OHS/EHS managers earn between $120,001 to $200,000
- 33 per cent of OHS/EHS national managers earn between $150,001 to $200,000
- 62 per cent of OHS/EHS group/general managers earn between $200,001 to $500,000 plus
- 58 per cent of WorkCover /RTW coordinators earn between $75,001 to $100,000
- 58 per cent of WorkCover/RTW managers earn between $100,001 to $150,000
- 75 per cent of WorkCover/RTW national/general managers earn between $120,001-$200,000