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hey may not drive BMW Z4 Roadsters or be custodians of the company credit card, but young construction professionals can, at least, make one boast. The 2004 Hays Montrose/性吧电台 contractors鈥� salary guide shows that many are raking in larger salary increases than their older colleagues.

Graduate engineers are banking an average of 13.3% more money than last year, and assistant quantity surveyors are taking home 4.1% more. In comparison, senior surveyors have only managed a 3.8% increase. Site agents aged 27 have secured 5.5% increases 鈥� and that鈥檚 0.3% more than their 40鈥搚ear-old bosses.

But although the survey shows that the young have done relatively well for themselves, few will get too excited. In fact, the strongest trend revealed by the survey over the past year is that salary growth for most construction staff has slowed compared with previous years.

All sectors have managed a salary growth that exceeds inflation, but for the majority it鈥檚 only by a couple of percentage points. Buyers, in particular, are only a hair鈥檚 breadth ahead of inflation (the Retail Prices Index is about 3%), with an average salary increase of 3.2%.

Dave Townsend, senior consultant in the Bristol office of Hays Montrose, says that young professionals in the South-west, especially those with a couple of years鈥� experience, know they are in a 鈥渃andidates鈥� market鈥�.

He says: 鈥淎 company we dealt with recently got so desperate for new blood that they placed a non-construction graduate in a buyer鈥檚 role. They couldn鈥檛 get anyone with the usual background. I think employers will be increasingly ready to take on graduates of any flavour in sectors where there are dire shortages.鈥�

The upshot of the lack of graduates in the buyer and surveyor sectors is that prospective employees are charging more for their services and demanding more responsibility at an earlier stage. Townsend says: 鈥淎 lot of graduates want responsibility from day one. The Bristol area, for example, has so much work starting on site, such as the regeneration of the Canons Marsh area and the new 10,000-seat Bristol Arena, that employers have to try and meet these demands.鈥�

Consultants elsewhere are experiencing a similar scenario. Sadie Coughlan, a principal consultant at Hays Montrose covering the southern Home Counties, says young quantity surveyors earning less than 拢30,000 are the most in-demand construction professionals in her area. But as she points out, one reason why salaries are increasing faster for younger members of the construction team is that older professionals are constrained by the 鈥済olden handcuff鈥� effect.

Coughlan says: 鈥淭he heavyweight professionals, those who have been in the business for many years, are enjoying their employers鈥� benefits and bonuses so don鈥檛 want to move jobs just to gain a few extra grand.鈥� The result is that pressure on seniors鈥� salaries is not as intense as it was three or four years ago.

Bill Chitty, recruitment manager in Hays Montrose鈥檚 London office, says that employers are increasingly investing in training in order to retain staff, and that clients are adding to the pressure on employers to invest in staff. 鈥淚t鈥檚 happening more and more often that regular clients such as Tesco and Sainsbury鈥檚 are asking to see a company鈥檚 record of training and development when they choose a contractor. They want to make sure that the individuals who work on their project have the right skills and experience,鈥� he says.

Chitty has noticed another trend, and one that may alarm home-grown graduates. Among contractors in the capital, there is a growing penchant for antipodean staff. 鈥淎 30-year-old Australian or New Zealander surveyor generally has a wider skills base than his or her British counterpart, and clients have picked up on this. If an Aussie goes on to our books, I know he or she will be able to get a job almost immediately,鈥� he says.

Chitty says that British site managers with experience on the commercial side of construction and the site-based coalface are rare, but this combination in more common in CVs from the Antipodes and South Africa.

I think employers will be increasingly ready to take on graduates of any flavour in sectors where there are dire shortages

Dave Townsend, Hays Montrose Bristol

One professional that is always in demand 鈥� irrespective of the colour of their passport 鈥� is the senior quantity surveyor. Recruitment consultants agree that they are like gold dust, and this means their employers do their level best to hang on to them. 鈥淚f a senior surveyor is making a move, often it鈥檚 not for money. It鈥檚 to expand their experience base,鈥� says Townsend.

So what are the other recruitment pressure points around the country? In East Anglia site agents, project managers and senior engineers are in high demand and commanding packages of up to 拢40,000, catching up with London salaries. The growth in site agents鈥� earnings reflects a trend around the country 鈥� on average their salaries have increased 5.2%.

In the Midlands, apart from site managers and, of course, senior surveyors, the most sought-after individuals are planners, engineers and junior estimators. In both the East and West Midlands, planners have enjoyed salary rises of over 6% this year as employers have tried to tempt them to relocate to the area.

In the North-east, housing, highway construction and transportation projects are so thick on the ground that site managers, civil and structural engineers, contracting quantity surveyors, architects, building services engineers and tradesmen are as rare as hen鈥檚 teeth.

David Hutton, area manager for Hays Montrose鈥檚 north-eastern office, says that housing site managers are particularly hard to come by. He says: 鈥淭here鈥檚 a huge amount of regeneration work in the region and that includes a lot of new social housing. Individuals with experience in this sector are highly sought after.鈥�

Major regeneration schemes in Manchester and Liverpool have led to a dearth of construction professionals across the board and salary increases that have overtaken inflation. As well as health schemes, a company car or car allowance and a contributory pension, these often involve a performance-related bonus worth up to 10% of the annual salary.

The recruitment market in Wales is experiencing mixed fortunes. Motorways and distribution projects, along with commercial and retail developments in Cardiff鈥檚 docklands, are creating huge demand and salary increases for construction professionals. However, the recruitment market is slowing up in some areas. Steve Lias, section manager at Hays Montrose鈥檚 Cardiff office, says housebuilders in particular are now more selective. 鈥淭he housing market has slowed a little. But good candidates with a strong record will always find a job.鈥�

In Scotland, as elsewhere in the UK, site and project managers as well as quantity surveyors are in high demand. Pay has dramatically increased over the past five years. In 1999, a senior surveyor would have been on a 拢22-23,000 salary. This has now rised to the 拢35, 000 mark. As salaries have gathered pace over the past two years, Scots have been lured back from south-eastern England to Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The past year has brought a steady salary increase for most construction professionals and left graduates flushed. Recruitment consultants鈥� prognosis is that these increases are sustainable and the market is set to stay strong at least for the next two years. The key is to keep developing your CV. Chitty says: 鈥淚t鈥檚 an employee鈥檚 market so make the most of it and develop your CV.

It鈥檚 a very wise investment.鈥�