Salaries Creeping Up

Printing industry wages outpaced other industries in 2007, yet the industry faces a challenge in attracting employees.

“Finding workers for today and tomorrow is one of the most critical needs and important issues that we face today,” says John Berthelsen, president of Suttle-Straus, a Waunakee, WI-based commercial printer that has more than doubled its sales the past six years.

The Graphic Arts Monthly Annual Salary Survey indicates industry compensation was up modestly, between 1% and 3%. When compared to other manufacturing jobs, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports production personnel in the lithographic offset segment earn an average of $17.01 per hour, higher than average hourly earnings of $16.68 for all manufacturing, and better than $15.96 for service industries, and $12.43 for retailers.

Although many of the BLS job categories are antiquated and need updating (see 60 Seconds, p.10), the salary data is still meaningful. The major problem with the data is that its corresponding description doesn't convey to potential job candidates the true characteristics, dynamics and opportunities of the printing industry.

“Graphic communications is the third largest manufacturing industry in the U.S., yet the government gives little credit to this field as a viable career choice,” says Michael Stinnett, PrintEd Instructor, Royal Oak High School. “Instead, the U.S. Dept. of Labor defines graphic communications in such a way that it implies the vocation requires little skill, offers hazardous training and promises dubious career advancement or achievement.”

It is no wonder that, despite competitive pay scales, the industry is at a deficit in recruiting employees, estimated to be around 30,000 positions annually. Yet, industry data reveals printers don't identify attracting workers as a major concern. In a recent compensation study from NAPL, only 24.5% of respondents considered employee recruitment a top issue in creating customer value.

“No industry—no matter how technologically advanced—can prosper for long without an effective labor force, and no one builds a sustainable competitive advantage only by investing in the same technology his competition can invest in tomorrow,” says the report.

GAM reader Gail Axt puts the problem of connecting the industry to the upcoming workforce in perspective. When her daughter looked for a summer job to put her graphic/print skills to use—both her parents work in printing and she is no stranger to a pressroom—all she found was a $6.00 per hour job at local screen printer.

“After gas, car expenses and taxes, she didn't earn much money, but she did gain some valuable hands-on computer experience,” says Axt. “It was quite humiliating when her younger brother earned more at the local grocery store without prior experience,” Axt says, wondering as a parent about the return-on-investment for a college degree in a print-related field. A telling statement, given enrollment in college-level printing programs are down.

When it comes to attracting workers, there appears to be a disconnect between printers' recruitment methods and the talent pool. The most popular method of finding workers among GAM survey respondents was placing print advertisements in newspapers or trade publications (41%). Respondents to NAPL's study cited newspaper ads, 61.2%, as an effective recruitment method.

Recognizing that historical methods for attracting workers is not working, PIA/GATF is exploring new ways to reach the talent pool, especially the younger generation. The association has launched a location in the virtual world of Second Life and placed a video on YouTube highlighting the benefits of working in an industry that can pay $50,000 to $60,000 annually. The group believes online worlds like Second Life could be used to host career fairs and provide a truer representation of the industry.

There are 8 million people participating in this cyberspace world. Many prestigious colleges and universities, including Harvard, MIT and Princeton, offer classes in Second Life.

“We need to reach the youth today where they are,” says Brian Regan, COO of industry recruitment firm Semper International, who helped PIA set up its presence on Second Life. He says the industry needs to pay more attention to social networking and other types of Websites. Why not have a Print Flickr account that shows exciting pictures and things that are happening in our industry, he asks.

In terms of trends in industry compensation, more firms are moving to incentive-based pay, reports NAPL's 2007 Organizational Development and Compensation Study.

“Although use has increased, these programs are still viewed anywhere from being a miracle cost reallocation system to a major waste of resources,” reports the study, available for purchase at www.napl.org.

Of the respondents to GAM's salary survey, 75% received a pay increase, mostly as part of an annual review (67%). Of those reporting a raise, 72% said the increase was between 1% and 3%, while 22% received an increase of between 4% and 5%. Respondents reported a 2.9% average increase in the last five surveys. Twenty-percent reported no change. Three percent of respondents reported salary cuts compared to 2%, 7% and 9%, respectively, in the last three studies.

Overall, more firms hired staff (34% up from 30%) than fired (13% down from 15%). Hourly workers (47%) and administrative support staff (43%) were most affected by layoffs. On the hiring side, hourly workers (45%) and sales and marketing staff (42%) were the top categories.

Summaries of salaries by job title are presented here and reflect results from 628 printing executives—the highest response rate ever for the study. New job categories added: VP logistics, VP fulfillment, VP mailing/postal affairs, logistics supervisor, mailing supervisor, logistics specialist and mailing specialist.