"What are your salary expectations?" This question is not easy to answer. Here is the remedy to avoid selling yourself below value.
How much is my work worth? Every employee asks himself this question sooner or later – mostly earlier. Whether the sum that is ultimately on the pay slip is cause for joy or is sobering depends on many factors. In which industry do you work, in which country or federal state do you live and how much professional experience do you have? And yes, gender can still have a massive impact on salaries in some occupational fields.
In order to give employees an overview of which jobs attract the most money, the most prominent industries are compared below – on the basis of job or industry portals. All information is gross, i.e. social security contributions and taxes are deducted from it. And: Unless a separate distinction is made, the values apply equally to female and male employees despite the masculine formulation.
Creating something – craft
As a construction worker without specialization in Germany, according to the craft salary index, listed by Jungheinrich Profishop, wages between 18,500 euros (Berlin) and 28,600 euros (Stuttgart, Karlsruhe) can be expected. As soon as it goes in the direction of metalwork, however, the salary can rise to up to 40,000 euros (Munich) per year. This coincides with the information from "Salary.de", where metalworkers get 3,047 euros, metal builders 4,016 euros a month.
Bricklayers, plumbers, carpenters and automotive mechanics can also expect around 3,000 to 3,100 euros per month. Electricians get an average of 300 euros more, butchers and painters 300 euros less. The hairdressing job, which is also part of the craft professions, is falling significantly – only a monthly salary of 2,127 euros can be expected here.
Teach, protect, govern – officials
The "servant" in state servant may seem disrespectful to one or the other, but in fact high wages can sometimes be achieved in this occupational field. According to "Focus Online", members of the Bundestag can get a salary of around 9,500 euros, which can increase to just under 14,000 euros a month through various flat-rate expenses. The average income of police officers in the higher service in Germany is according to "Salary comparison.com" at an average of 4,084 euros per month.
For teachers, the salary depends on many factors – for example, where you teach, whether you are a civil servant or a collective bargaining employee, or whether you work at a primary, secondary or secondary school (grade A 12) or a grammar school (grade A 13). The front runner in both categories is Bavaria, where teachers with A 12, according to the information portal for the public sector, have an average starting salary of 3,924 euros, teachers with A 13 even 4,579 euros. As a civil servant teacher, it is especially a pleasure to look at the net salary – because you do not have to pay any social security contributions and can easily get 500 euros more per month than employees.
Advertising and Creativity – Media
As a copywriter or editor, the salary to be expected depends heavily on the topic. As a technical editor, for example in the field of mechanical engineering or aviation, a monthly salary of over 5,000 euros is easy to achieve. According to "Salary.de", copywriters without managerial tasks land at a little over 3,000 euros a month, a simple editor therefore comes to an average of 3,350 euros.
PR consultants have an average of 3,760 euros a month on their pay slips. According to "Absolventa.de", the starting salary in marketing depends heavily on the type of business degree. As a bachelor's degree, you start online marketing with an annual salary of 36,000 euros, with a master’s degree it is 41,000 euros. The most money is here as a brand manager – 43,000 euros (Bachelor) or 47,000 euros (Master). The difference between men and women can be gigantic. A detailed salary report from Stepstone shows that male PR / marketing employees can get up to 67,000 euros, while women only get around 54,000 euros. In sales, the imbalance can even amount to over 16,000 euros a year.
A big advantage for everyone in this professional field: More than in any other industry, in times of the corona pandemic, thanks to the home office options, it can be carried out almost without restrictions.
Buying and Selling – Commerce
Some trade in food, others in stocks. According to "Glassdoor.de", anyone who works as a branch manager at a supermarket chain has a monthly salary of 57,850 euros, and sales managers even 80,400 euros. Kununu, on the other hand, recently listed a "retail sales force" with an average of just 24,000 euros per year, which is just 2,000 euros per month.
Those who earn their money with money, on the other hand, are among the top earners in Germany. Once again Stepstone's salary report shows that the banking sector ranks first in all industries with an average salary of 69,700 euros, closely followed by the pharmaceutical industry (69,500 euros) and vehicle construction (68,800 euros). In banking, finance and insurance it is also noticeable how much the average salary differs between women and men. 57,300 euros annual salary for female employees compared to 73,800 euros annual salary for male employees.
Saving lives and giving dignity – health industry
Healthcare jobs fluctuate massively in terms of both reputation and pay. As "demigods in white", doctors can expect the highest average salaries by far, according to Stepstone – 92,316 euros are listed here.
As a caregiver, for example in a nursing home, one can only dream of such merits. "Pfegestudium.de" lists a monthly salary of just 1,700 to 2,600 euros for nursing assistants, for nursing staff with professional experience it is 2,150 to 3,100 euros. Only with a bachelor's degree (2,600 to 4,900 euros) or master’s degree (3,500 to 5,900 euros) can higher salaries be expected.
From A to B – transport of people and goods
Whether you fly or drive makes a huge difference in salary. According to "Salary.de" and "Salary Comparison.com", a flight captain can expect a starting salary of 4,000 to 5,000 euros per month, which can increase to over 10,000 euros in the course of his career. Bus drivers, on the other hand, can expect a salary of between 1,900 and 2,500 euros, and underground train drivers for between 2,000 and 2,740 euros. As expected, the earnings of taxi drivers can fluctuate widely – 1,740 to 3,450 euros per month are stated here.
Those who transport goods by lorry rather than people can show an annual salary of between around 26,800 euros and 36,700 euros, depending on the federal state, according to the salary index.