BSA 2024 Compliance Salary Guide v2 SPREADS - Flipbook - Page 14
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Salary and bonus trends
While starting salaries in 2023 did not experience
the meteoric growth seen over the previous two
years, they continued to rise in line with market
expectations.
A period of stabilisation was to be expected after the
whirlwind of hiring activity that occurred after the
pandemic, but employers recognise the challenges
of 昀椀nding skilled candidates and are still willing to
pay for the right person.
The outcome is that salaries across most of the
markets and roles we cover have remained resilient,
despite organisations tightening their recruitment
budgets. This is partly explained by the fact that
employers are 昀椀ghting hard to retain their best staff.
“Buybacks and counteroffers are more widespread
today than I’ve seen in a long time,” says Nick Evans,
Principal Consultant at Barclay Simpson.
“Candidates are savvy and understand that if they
look for new roles, their employer is likely to come
back with a more generous offer to prevent them
from leaving.”
However, starting salaries for junior candidates
are more volatile and unpredictable.
On the buy-side, for example, talent shortages and
huge post-pandemic hiring demand caused junior
starting salaries to soar at asset managers and
hedge funds. Most 昀椀rms now have well-stocked
compliance and 昀椀nancial crime teams, with some
even looking to trim down their workforce after
over-hiring.
“A number of junior candidates are having to adjust
their salary expectations once they re-enter the
Employers intend to
increase base salaries
for existing employees
by 6% in 2024
market. There just aren’t as many roles available at
their level anymore,” explains James Boxall, Principal
Consultant at Barclay Simpson.
With salaries stabilising over the past 12 months,
more employers are con昀椀dent their salary bandings
are now in line with market expectations. Currently,
78% of organisations believe what they can offer
is ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ aligned with candidates’
demands.
When it comes to bonuses, 2024 is expected to be
a lean year for the banking industry. Nevertheless,
86% of organisations indicated they are likely to offer
bonuses this year – only a modest drop from the 89%
who said the same in 2023.
Regarding bene昀椀ts, we typically see larger organisations provide better bene昀椀ts packages with more
options around what employees can use or take.
Smaller businesses, meanwhile, tend to have greater
昀氀exibility on bonuses but are more likely to offer
basic bene昀椀ts.
Across the board, more organisations are including
a suite of wellness bene昀椀ts to support the mental
wellbeing of employees. Moreover, holiday allowances are beginning to improve, with at least 25
days now considered the norm and many businesses offering 30 days.
“People are now used to working from home, so 昀椀rms
may need to get more creative with bene昀椀ts if they
want to differentiate themselves and entice staff
back into the of昀椀ce,” says Jane McKechnie, Executive
Consultant at Barclay Simpson.
