2004 Salary Survey results

Information Outlook, Sept, 2004 by John R. Latham

The 2004 SLA Salary Survey results show that the average salary increases for SLA members have outpaced inflation once again. Based on salaries as of April 1, the mean percentage increase in salaries for 2004 over 2003 was 4.3 percent for U.S.-based respondents. For the same 12-month period, the Consumer Price Index rose only 2.3 percent. For Canadian members, salaries were 3.6 percent higher on April 1, 2004 than a year earlier, while the CPI had only increased by 1.6 percent.

The average salary for U.S. members who answered the survey was $63,151, compared with $61,522 in 2003, and for Canadian members CAN $63,548 compared with CAN $61,959.

All salaries in Canadian tables are reported in Canadian dollars. The exchange rate on April 1, 2004, was CAN $1.31 Canadian = USD $1.

Although we announced with pride in 1999 that gender equity had been achieved in U.S. median salaries, when women's salaries exceeded those of men for the first time, this trend has not continued. Since 1999 the differential has moved slightly in favor of men, but this year's results show a marked increase in the difference between male and women's salaries. The median shows men's pay 10 percent higher, but the mean is only 7 percent higher, which indicates that the differential is less marked at the top end of the scale.

The salaries of our Canadian colleagues have done the opposite. The results show women's mean salaries exceeding those of men for the first time: CAN $63,985 compared to CAN $60,996. The median figures show the same percentage differential. It will be interesting to see if this is a lasting trend or, like the U.S., just a temporary phenomenon.

The mean salary in the Pacific region moved into the second place this year ($67,083), just behind the Middle Atlantic region ($67,786). The responses of New England survey participants indicate a mean salary of $66,775, and the South Atlantic region closed the gap in fourth place with $65,522 compared with $60,960 in 2003. As I pointed out in last year's review, don't forget that the higher pay scales may look inviting, but one has to consider the cost of living in those areas.

The results show that 47 percent of the US members who responded supervise or manage one or two employees; these respondents earn, on average, $55,678. Just under 4 percent of the respondents supervise or manage 20 or more employees, and, on average, earn $104, 339, a differential that is no great surprise.

The complete results of the 2004 survey will be published electronically in PDF by the end of September. Additionally, an exciting new feature will allow users to leverage survey results online. An online salary calculator will access the survey data, based on search criteria set by the user, to provide an instant result.

Due to the ease of delivery of an online survey, in 2004 we surveyed 100 percent of the U.S. membership compared with the 50 percent surveyed over the last few years. Although the overall response rate fell slightly, we received 2,320 usable survey responses compared with 1,366 in 2003.

Communities of Practice Update

It is pleasing to note that since June 21, new communities have been added to SLA's Communities of Practice at http://cop.sla.org. They are as diverse as the new Competitive Intelligence Division and the Emerging Leaders Network.

Don't forget that once you have joined a community you need to set up your notification preferences for each community by clicking on the Notifications icon on the top of the Community Home page. If you wish to be notified automatically to your external e-mail address click on the Messaging icon on your Personal Home page and select Mail Preferences.

2004 Basic Annual Salaries: Canada and the United States

                                   Salary

                 10th      First    Median   Third       90th
              Percentile  Quartile   50%    Quartile  Percentile
                            25%               75%

All Canadian      46,000    52,000  60,000    74,000      86,137
Respondents

All U.S.          38,000    46,000  58,258    75,000      94,359
Respondents

                 Salary         Percent
                                Change

              Number  Mean       Mean
                              percentage
                                change

All Canadian     219  63,548     3.6%
Respondents

All U.S.       2,320  63,151     4.3%
Respondents

The Information Center is sponsored by Factiva, a Dow Jones and Reuters company.

John R. Latham is the director of the SLA Information Center. He can be reached at jlatham@sla.org