Travel salaries hit new low
At £24,337, the average salary for a new job in travel fell to its lowest level in more than two years last month, according to travel recruitment specialist C&M.
It said the fall came despite travel wages in London reaching their highest point since May.
C&M, which produces a monthly Travel Salary Index, said the drop was due to wages in the north dipping to £20,487, their lowest point since March 2014. However, it said this was mainly due to the unusually high proportion of lower-paying travel consultant roles being filled last month.
Wages for standard travel jobs (those paying up to £40,000), also fell in October to £21,250, which was their lowest figure since September 2015 although this remains above the 2015 monthly average. October also marked the first time in 17 months that standard travel wages have fallen annually.
C&M director Barbara Kolosinska said: "On first glance, October’s overall fall in wages is disappointing, but this was mainly due to an unusually high number of lower paid travel consultant roles being placed in the month and skewing the overall average, rather than a general decrease in wages across all positions.
"In fact, in London, where there was a more typical balance of lower and higher paying roles in October, salaries increased to their highest point since May. The next couple of months will give us a better indication of whether wages are falling or if October was just a one-off, but this has been a strong year for wages and it still looks very likely that the 2016 average salary will beat last year’s figure."
The number of people starting new jobs in the travel industry rose to its highest level of the year in October, according to the latest Travel Salary Index.
Alongside the increase in placements, the month also saw more candidates begin their travel job search than at any point since May, while the number of new travel roles being made available was the third highest of the year.
Kolosinska said: "More candidates found new travel jobs last month than at any point this year, which is a terrific sign of the health of the travel industry at the moment.
"With high numbers of both new candidates and new travel roles being created, activity levels in the travel recruitment market remain very strong and it looks like the industry is set for a busy end to the year."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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