The average monthly salary in Shenzhen is the highest in Guangdong Province for the fifth year in a row, according to the latest survey of salaries in Guangdong by several human resources research centers.
According to the survey, the average monthly salary for employees in 327 positions from 12 industries in Shenzhen is 8,421 yuan (US$1,270), higher than the other eight surveyed cities, namely Guangzhou, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing.
Guangzhou ranks second with an average monthly salary of 7,210 yuan, followed by Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan and Huizhou with slight disparities. Salaries in Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing remain relatively low.
The survey showed that the average remuneration received by employees in the nine cities this year has increased by 6.5 percent, compared with that of last year, but the increase varies based on the nature of the jobs.
For instance, State-owned enterprises in the surveyed cities have the largest growth in average salary, up 26.04 percent, while the hike in salaries at private companies is around 4.96 percent.
In terms of industries, people working in the financial sector top their counterparts in other industries in Guangdong, with an average monthly earning of 12,027 yuan. Practitioners in the Internet, software and IT services industries have an average monthly salary of 8,220 yuan.
A comparison based on employees’ education background shows that the average salary for holders of master’s degrees is 8,704 yuan, while people with lower than a high school education are paid 5,622 yuan a month on average.
Notably, the average monthly salary for people with a high school education or lower has experienced the largest increase, of 37.93 percent, compared with last year, while the monthly pay of bachelor’s and master’s degree holders has decreased by 14.10 percent.
According to the survey, the disparity in salaries among people with different education backgrounds is gradually reducing, which is closely related to the supply and demand of employees in Guangdong in recent years.
The trend shows that the increasing number of jobseekers with undergraduate degrees has made the job market more competitive, but factories are still experiencing a shortage of workers who have skills rather than degrees. Therefore, many small factories and businesses have had to offer higher salaries to attract skilled workers.
Separately, Shenzhen Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau said Tuesday that as of October 2017, the city had certified and introduced 9,604 top professional talents from both home and abroad. Most of the talents are researchers in technology fields or professors from tertiary education institutions.
Around 14,800 returned overseas Chinese students came to work in Shenzhen this year. The figure is expected to exceed 16,000 by the end of this year, up 50 percent from last year.
The bureau said that it is working to build more service platforms in the city to help secure social welfare for top professional talents, including housing, health care, education and funding.
