U.S. Employees Could Earn $7,500 More Per Year On Average, According To Glassdoor's "Know Your Worth™" Tool

Emergency Medical Technician, Data Scientist and Recruiter Among Top 25 Jobs Where People Could Earn More

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Oct 18, 2017, 07:00 ET

MILL VALLEY, Calif., Oct. 18, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Are most American workers earning what they're really worth? Glassdoor, one of the world's largest and fastest growing job sites, today has revealed new pay data showing the average U.S. employee could be earning $7,528, or 13.3 percent, more per year than his or her current annual base salary, according to its Know Your Worth¹ salary estimator tool. With three in five U.S. employees acknowledging they did not negotiate their salaries, this new data suggests that many Americans could be earning more by becoming more informed about their current market value.

This data was compiled by leveraging aggregated pay information via Glassdoor's Know Your Worth tool over the past year², in which an individual voluntarily and anonymously submits his or her annual base salary, in addition to current job title, employer, location and years of relevant work experience. Then, the tool instantly calculates the individual's personalized market value — an estimated median of base pay he or she could earn in their local job market, right now. Know Your Worth uses sophisticated data science and machine learning algorithms that leverage millions of salary reports shared by employees on Glassdoor, while taking into account real-time supply and demand trends in local job markets, and typical career transitions of people doing similar work.

"Given that we're in the best labor market we've seen in a generation, highlighted by healthy job growth, low unemployment and wages steadily growing, it's not a surprise to see a gap between what most Americans are currently earning and what they could be earning," said Dr. Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor chief economist. "With the job market full of opportunities and the economy hitting full employment, the value of skilled workers has increased. We see this even more in industries like technology and healthcare, in which demand for competitive skillsets outpaces supply. The big takeaway for job seekers is that our Know Your Worth tool can shed light on your current market value, based in part on market conditions where you live, to help you decide whether it's time to negotiate your pay."

In addition to Glassdoor's Know Your Worth tool to help people better understand pay, this week, Glassdoor is introducing an improved salaries experience offering more personal pay information, based on an individual's preferences. People will now be able to research salary data for a specific job title in a particular location and filter this information by years of experience, industry and/or company size, including the option to combine all three factors in one search. People will also see a helpful data visualization of their salaries search, displaying the average and specific ranges of annual base pay based on their preferences, a comparison to the national average, additional cash compensation data, and salaries for related job titles, among other insights.

Top 25 Jobs Where People Could Earn More

Leveraging pay data shared voluntarily and anonymously by U.S. employees to the Know Your Worth tool over the past year, Glassdoor has also identified the Top 25 Jobs Where People Could Earn More.² This list was determined by looking at the current median base salaries submitted by employees to Know Your Worth, comparing it to their current market value calculated by the tool, and measuring the difference. Ranging from a 13.2 to 21.9 percent difference in base pay, these are the 25 jobs with the biggest difference between current median base salary and current market value (estimated base salary):

1. Emergency Medical Technician

Potential Salary Growth: 21.9% or $7,771
Current Median Base Salary: $27,636
Current Market Value: $35,407

2. Certified Nursing Assistant

Potential Salary Growth: 21.3% or $6,505
Current Median Base Salary: $24,000
Current Market Value: $30,505

3. Research Assistant

Potential Salary Growth: 20.9% or $7,935
Current Median Base Salary: $30,000
Current Market Value: $37,935

4. Java Developer

Potential Salary Growth: 17.7% or $16,792
Current Median Base Salary: $78,000
Current Market Value: $94,792

5. Pharmacist

Potential Salary Growth: 16.5% or $23,261
Current Median Base Salary: $118,000
Current Market Value: $141,261

6. Web Designer

Potential Salary Growth: 15.5% or $9,508
Current Median Base Salary: $52,000
Current Market Value: $61,508

7. Software Engineer

Potential Salary Growth: 15.2% or $17,943
Current Median Base Salary: $100,000
Current Market Value: $117,943

8. Medical Assistant

Potential Salary Growth: 15.1% or $5,320
Current Median Base Salary: $30,000
Current Market Value: $35,320

9. Marketing Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 15.0% or $14,107
Current Median Base Salary: $80,000
Current Market Value: $94,107

10. Communications Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 14.8% or $13,334
Current Median Base Salary: $76,498
Current Market Value: $89,831

11. Program Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 14.8% or $15,302
Current Median Base Salary: $88,000
Current Market Value: $103,302

12. UX Designer

Potential Salary Growth: 14.7% or $14,875
Current Median Base Salary: $86,000
Current Market Value: $100,875

13. Consultant

Potential Salary Growth: 14.5% or $14,462
Current Median Base Salary: $85,000
Current Market Value: $99,462

14. Web Developer

Potential Salary Growth: 14.5% or $10,773
Current Median Base Salary: $63,500
Current Market Value: $74,273

15. Tax Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 13.9% or $17,330
Current Median Base Salary: $107,019
Current Market Value: $124,349

16. Programmer Analyst

Potential Salary Growth: 13.9% or $11,548
Current Median Base Salary: $71,500
Current Market Value: $83,048

17. Data Scientist

Potential Salary Growth: 13.6% or $15,752
Current Median Base Salary: $100,000
Current Market Value: $115,752

18. Systems Engineer

Potential Salary Growth: 13.5% or $13,634
Current Median Base Salary: $87,000
Current Market Value: $100,634

19. Network Engineer

Potential Salary Growth: 13.5% or $12,508
Current Median Base Salary: $80,000
Current Market Value: $92,508

20. Product Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 13.5% or $16,874
Current Median Base Salary: $108,000
Current Market Value: $124,874

21. Project Manager

Potential Salary Growth: 13.5% or $11,971
Current Median Base Salary: $76,800
Current Market Value: $88,771

22. Data Analyst

Potential Salary Growth: 13.4% or $9,289
Current Median Base Salary: $60,000
Current Market Value: $69,289

23. Recruiter

Potential Salary Growth: 13.3% or $7,642
Current Median Base Salary: $50,000
Current Market Value: $57,642

24. Registered Nurse

Potential Salary Growth: 13.2% or $9,097
Current Median Base Salary: $60,000
Current Market Value: $69,097

25. Bank Teller

Potential Salary Growth: 13.2% or $3,939
Current Median Base Salary: $26,000
Current Market Value: $29,939

Pay is Not a Leading Factor in Employee Satisfaction

While it's highly valuable for people to understand their current market value to ensure they are receiving fair pay, pay should be just one factor when considering job and career decisions. While salary and compensation packages are among the top considerations before accepting a new job, Glassdoor research shows that pay is not among the leading factors tied to long-term employee satisfaction. In fact, culture and values, career opportunities, and trust in senior leadership are the biggest drivers of long-term employee satisfaction. Thus, while money matters most to people when a job offer is on the table, there are several other factors job seekers should consider when making job and career decisions, and employers should consider when offering jobs to new candidates and/or negotiating current roles with employees.

"Pay is important, but it's not the only factor people should consider when thinking about a new job or a change in their current role. People need to take into account what's most important to them short-term and long-term, which might include career advancement opportunities, what the culture and values are like at a potential employer, specific benefits, if you truly believe in the mission of the company, the type of work you might be doing, where you work, the structure behind who you might be working with, and more," said Jamie Hichens, Glassdoor senior talent acquisition partner. "If a job or career decision is based purely on pay or monetary rewards, it will likely not lead to a fulfilling long-term match between the employer and the individual."

Know Your Worth For Employees and Job Seekers: What Now?
A personal market value reveals the estimated base pay an individual should expect to earn in today's job market. If an employee finds their market value is higher than what they are currently making, they may decide to negotiate their pay and discuss opportunities for advancement at their current employer, explore other job opportunities, and/or remain in their current position. Glassdoor has developed an Employee's Guide to Know Your Worth to better understand their estimated market value and put the information to work.

Know Your Worth For Employers: Preparing for Questions and Conversations
For employers, Know Your Worth market values can be another important data point when reviewing internal compensation practices. It is very likely employees and candidates will have questions about how their market values are recognized in the company's overall compensation programs. Being clear about a company's total compensation and rewards program and how base pay is factored in will be helpful in shaping these discussions. An Employer's Guide to Know Your Worth, with input of human resource executives at Glassdoor and other employers, is available for free to understand the product and answer questions.

To get started and try Know Your Worth, simply visit Glassdoor and/or download the Glassdoor Job Search apps for iPhone or Android.

KNOW YOUR WORTH RESOURCES:
FAQs & Methodology
Employee Guide
Employer Guide
Salary Tips & Advice
Read more from Glassdoor's Chief Human Resources Officer on Know Your Worth

INTERVIEWS + ADDITIONAL SALARY RESEARCH: A Glassdoor spokesperson is available to interview. Glassdoor has also conducted extensive research on the topic of salary transparency, gender pay gaps and general compensation. For more, please contact [email protected].

Glassdoor is now the No. 2 job site in the U.S.³, featuring all of the latest jobs online paired with approximately 35 million reviews and insights from employees on 700,000 companies in 190 countries.⁴ Glassdoor welcomes more than 48 million unique users, on average, to its desktop and mobile platforms each month.⁵ The top reason people visit Glassdoor is to search and/or apply to jobs.⁶ Glassdoor is also one of the most effective channels for job advertising and recruiting, according to third party research.

¹Learn more about the Know Your Worth methodology: https://www.glassdoor.com/knowyourworth/about.htm

²Pay data based on the 1.3 million U.S. employees who submitted their current base pay to the Know Your Worth tool between October 18, 2016 and October 6, 2017. These parameters also apply to Glassdoor's 25 Jobs Where People Could Earn More report, which identifies jobs among 84 of the most common job titles in the U.S., according to Glassdoor's Local Pay Reports, with the biggest difference between current median base salary and current median market value (estimated base salary) — See below for specifics into each data category for this list:

Potential salary growth represents the difference between the current median base salary and current market value for each job title
Current median base salary represents the median base salary as submitted by employees to the Know Your Worth tool over the past year (10/18/16-10/6/17); At least 500 U.S. employees provided pay information per job title
Current market value represents the median market value based on the Know Your Worth salary estimator tool

³Based on unique users, custom job list sites % Change Media Trend Report, Comscore June 2017 Media Metrix®; Compared to Indeed.com, CareerBuilder.com, Monster.com and ZipRecruiter.com.

⁴Glassdoor Internal Data, September 2017

⁵Google Analytics, CQ3'17 average

⁶Glassdoor.com U.S. Site Survey, August 2017

About Glassdoor
Glassdoor is one of the largest and fastest growing job sites in the world today. Set apart by the tens of millions of reviews and insights provided by employees and candidates, Glassdoor combines all the jobs with this valuable data to make it easy for people to find a job that is uniquely right for them. As a result, Glassdoor helps employers hire truly informed candidates at scale through effective recruiting solutions like job advertising and employer branding products. Launched in 2008, Glassdoor now has reviews and insights for more than 700,000 companies in more than 190 countries. For labor market trends and analysis, visit Glassdoor Economic Research. For company news and career advice and tips, visit the Glassdoor Blog and for employer-related news and insights to help employers hire, visit the Glassdoor for Employers Blog. Visit Glassdoor.com or download our apps on iOS and Android platforms.

Glassdoor® is a registered trademark of Glassdoor, Inc.
Know your Worth™ and Salary Explorer™ are trademarks of Glassdoor, Inc.

SOURCE Glassdoor