In the second quarter of 2023, Zhaopin, a prominent recruitment platform in China, unveiled its ‘China Corporate Recruitment Salary Report.’ This report provides an extensive overview of recruitment salary levels within 38 core cities across the nation. Beyond presenting the salary landscape for the second quarter, the report delves into a comprehensive analysis of shifts in recruitment salaries across key cities, industries, and professions. It serves as an invaluable resource for both businesses and job seekers seeking to gain insights into prevailing market dynamics.
During the second quarter, the average monthly recruitment salary saw a noteworthy uptick, reaching 10,266 yuan. This figure marks a quarter-on-quarter increase while registering a marginal year-on-year decrease.
In the context of 2023’s second quarter, the recruitment salaries for enterprises across the 38 cities exhibited a seasonally-driven resurgence, reflecting a 1.6% quarter-on-quarter rise, culminating in an average monthly recruitment salary of 10,266 yuan. Examining year-on-year changes, it is worth noting that as businesses grappled with persistent economic recovery pressures, the pace of growth in recruitment salaries experienced a slowdown. In the first half of 2022, the year-on-year growth was approximately 10%, but it dwindled to 4.4% in the latter half of the year. This trend continued into the first quarter of this year, where growth further tapered to a modest 0.9%. However, the second quarter witnessed a reversal of this trend, with the average recruitment salary experiencing a minor 0.7% year-on-year decline.
Scrutinizing the distribution of recruitment salaries, the 25th percentile stood at 6,001 yuan per month, the median held steady at 8,001 yuan per month, and the 75th percentile reached 12,001 yuan per month for enterprises within the 38 cities. The median remained unchanged when compared to the first quarter but marked a reduction of 251 yuan per month in comparison to the second quarter of the previous year.
In the second quarter of 2023, Shanghai continues to lead the pack when it comes to compensation, with median salaries surpassing the ten-thousand-yuan mark in Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen.
Across the 38 core cities monitored by Zhaopin, Shanghai maintained its top spot during the second quarter, boasting an average monthly recruitment salary of 13,486 yuan. Beijing followed closely behind, with an average monthly salary of 13,438 yuan, while Shenzhen secured the third position with 12,774 yuan. A glance at median recruitment salaries reveals that Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen have all breached the ten-thousand-yuan threshold, indicative of their overall higher salary levels. Hangzhou also came close to the ten-thousand-yuan mark, ranking fourth at 9,743 yuan. Nanjing surged ahead of Suzhou and Guangzhou to secure a spot in the top five, boasting an average recruitment salary of 11,061 yuan and a median salary of 9,000 yuan.
In this quarter, cities in the Yangtze River Delta, such as Suzhou, Ningbo, Wuxi, and Hefei, as well as cities in the Pearl River Delta, including Guangzhou, Zhuhai, Dongguan, and Foshan, alongside Xiamen, Wuhan, Chengdu, and Changsha, all maintained relatively high recruitment salary levels. Conversely, cities in the Northeastern region, like Harbin, Shenyang, Changchun, and Dalian, as well as Taiyuan, Yantai, and Shijiazhuang, exhibited comparatively lower recruitment salary levels, with average salaries hovering around 8,000 yuan and median salaries around 6,000 yuan.
In the second quarter, the Fund/Securities/Futures/Investment sector continued to offer the highest salaries, averaging 13,737 yuan. Financial fields such as Banking (11,841 yuan) and Insurance (11,269 yuan) also secured prominent positions in the salary hierarchy. The Electronic Technology/Semiconductor/Integrated Circuit sector claimed the second spot with an average recruitment salary of 12,175 yuan. Information technology sectors, including Computer Software and IT Services, also featured in the top ten, maintaining their competitive compensation packages compared to other sectors, despite a slight dip in salaries compared to the previous year. The Internet/E-commerce sector reported an average recruitment salary of 10,705 yuan in the second quarter, marking a 4% year-on-year decline and slipping to the sixteenth position.
A closer look at both average and median salaries reveals that the Energy/Mining/Extraction/Metallurgy and Aerospace Research and Manufacturing industries enjoy higher average salaries, ranking third and eighth, respectively. However, their median salary rankings are relatively lower, coming in at seventh and fourteenth, respectively. This suggests that compensation levels within these two industries exhibit significant disparities, with a few high-paying positions influencing the overall average salaries. For instance, in the Energy/Mining/Extraction/Metallurgy industry, the 75th percentile salary aligns with sectors like Fund/Securities/Futures/Investment and IT Services, all standing at 15,000 yuan. However, the median and 25th percentile salaries in this industry are approximately 600 yuan lower.
Biopharmaceutical Firms Increase R&D Investment, Resulting in a 5% YoY Salary Growth to an Average of 11,239 Yuan per Month
When examining year-on-year salary growth rates across industries, the Electronic Technology/Semiconductor/Integrated Circuit sector stands out with a robust 5.9% increase in salaries, marking the highest growth rate. With an aging population and rising demand for pharmaceutical and medical services, combined with strong government support, companies are intensifying their efforts in research and development within the biopharmaceutical sector. This sector is currently in a strategic upswing, recognized as a key emerging industry in China with promising future prospects.
In recent years, biopharmaceutical firms have consistently increased their recruitment salaries. From 2020 to 2022, the average quarterly year-on-year growth rate reached 8.5%. The first quarter of this year saw a 6.6% increase, and in the current quarter, the growth rate remains substantial at 5.1%, all exceeding the industry’s average growth rate during the same periods. Additionally, sectors such as Industrial Automation, High-Tech Manufacturing, and New Energy continue to experience salary increases, with year-on-year growth rates surpassing 3% in the second quarter.
High-Paying Roles in the Biopharmaceutical Sector: Market Expansion and Pharmaceutical R&D
Delving deeper into the biopharmaceutical industry, it becomes apparent that positions related to market expansion and pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) stand out in terms of salary attractiveness. In the second quarter of 2023, the role of Sales Director in the Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology sector claimed the top spot with an average monthly recruitment salary of 28,447 yuan. Other market expansion roles, including Pharmaceutical Product Manager, Pharmaceutical Marketing Manager, and Sales Team Manager, also offer substantial salaries, with average monthly recruitment salaries exceeding 15,000 yuan. On the R&D front, positions such as Clinical Project Manager and Pharmaceutical R&D Manager boast salaries surpassing 20,000 yuan. Additionally, roles in Clinical Research (18,301 yuan), Pharmaceutical Technology R&D (15,947 yuan), and Formulation R&D (14,667 yuan) feature prominently in the high-paying category.
These findings underscore the significance of technological innovation as a driving force behind the sustained growth of the biopharmaceutical industry. To maintain their competitive edge and foster innovation, biopharmaceutical firms are actively leveraging attractive salaries to attract and retain top-tier R&D talent.
Chip Engineers Maintain Top Earnings Position with an Average Monthly Salary of 26,012 Yuan; Anchor Roles Fall Out of the Top 20 Salary Rankings
Examining various professions, chip engineers consistently occupy the top spot in high-paying careers. In the second quarter, they earned an average monthly recruitment salary of 26,012 yuan, marking a 1.6% increase from the previous quarter’s 25,599 yuan. AI engineers also enjoyed substantial salaries, surpassing the 20,000-yuan mark and securing third place. Technical roles like software development, hardware development, mobile development, and data engineering, while experiencing slight salary declines compared to the previous year, still retain their status as high-paying positions.
Conversely, anchor roles witnessed an 8% reduction in average monthly recruitment salary during the second quarter, dropping to 10,751 yuan. This decline resulted in anchor roles no longer featuring in the top 20 highest-paying professions list. With the easing of pandemic-related restrictions, the public’s dependence on online consumption and entertainment has diminished, leading to reduced demand and compensation for anchor positions.
Salaries on the Rise in Service Industries: Tourism, Dining, Fitness, and Beauty Show Significant Increases
Looking at year-over-year salary growth, the second quarter of this year witnessed a further release of consumer potential in China as contact-based and gathering-based service consumption continued to grow. The impact of holidays like ‘May Day’ led to a substantial increase in tourism, resulting in an 8.6% overall increase in recruitment salaries for the tourism service sector compared to the same period last year. Specific roles within this sector, such as travel planners, tour guides, and visa specialists, experienced year-on-year salary growth rates exceeding 10%.
The dining service sector also demonstrated strong growth, with a 5.6% overall increase in salary levels compared to the second quarter of last year. Positions like chefs, barbecue masters, bartenders, and bakers saw noticeable increases in their recruitment salaries. Additionally, positions related to sports, fitness, health, and beauty recorded significant increases in recruitment salaries, with year-on-year growth rates of 7.6% and 4.9%, respectively. This quarter, professions including business consulting, financial services, doctors/pharmacists, domestic services, and clerical/assistant roles entered the top 10 professions with the highest year-on-year salary growth rates.
Data reveals that in the second quarter of this year, recruitment salaries for domestic companies in China exhibited a month-over-month increase. However, they showed a slight year-over-year decline compared to the previous year. Major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen, along with industries like finance and information technology, continue to lead in terms of competitive salaries for roles like chip engineers. In contrast to the same period last year, cities like Wuxi, Suzhou, and Ningbo have seen consistent upward trends in salaries. The pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector, in particular, has experienced a significant increase in recruitment salaries. Additionally, positions in service-oriented industries such as tourism and dining have witnessed a faster rate of salary growth.
The domestic economy is demonstrating a continued recovery, driven by increased consumer activity and innovation. This has resulted in new dynamics within regional, industry-specific, and occupation-specific recruitment markets. Job seekers are advised to stay informed about changing salary trends in the job market and to adjust their salary expectations accordingly. It is essential to make informed decisions regarding employment channels and job-seeking strategies.
