Do high-tech employers see the end of the value crisis in high-tech? The Central Bureau of Statistics reports this morning (Sunday) on a reversal of the trend in the wages of high-tech workers: after several consecutive months of a decrease in the gross wages, there was a first increase, albeit modest, from NIS 26,878 for the month of May 2022 to NIS 27,066 for the month of June. Although this is a modest increase in the average wage, 0.7%, this marks a relaxation or recovery in the wages of workers in the technology sector.
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As I recall, the salary in high-tech reached its peak in February of this year, when for the first time it crossed the threshold of NIS 30,000 per month and reached an amount of NIS 30,049. Starting in March, a drop in wages was recorded: in March it was NIS 29,772, a decrease of one percent, and then fell by 7% to NIS 27,685 in April and NIS 26,878 in May.
In an annual perspective, the salary in high-tech only continues to rise, and at an ever-increasing rate. Although the second and third quarters of 2022 put the Israeli high-tech into an atmosphere of crisis due to the rise in interest rates and sharp decreases in the value of public and some private companies, the average salary in high-tech in June this year is 8.1% higher than in June last year. As you may remember, June last year was the best month ever in terms of investments in private Israeli high-tech companies and IPOs of Israeli companies in New York.
Not every one of the fields in the industry benefits from a wage increase to the same extent. In the field of scientific R&D, there was a decrease from 30,185 shekels for the month of May to 29,240 shekels in June, close to a decrease of one thousand shekels in one month.
The average increase in wages is apparently explained by three sectors: the programmers, whose wages rose from NIS 28,594 in May to NIS 29,105 in June; Pharmaceutical industry workers, whose wages increased from NIS 19,464 in May to NIS 21,067 in June; And the employees of the telecommunications companies, who represent a total of less than 5% of all employees in the technology sector, whose wages recorded the biggest jump – an increase of 19% in just one month to NIS 18,625 in June.
An increase in the average salary in the economy as well
The CBS data also shows that the average salary in the economy for an Israeli worker rose to NIS 12,117 in July of this year, 3.5% more than the salary recorded in July 2021, when the salary was NIS 11,715.
Even in relation to the last few months, this is a recovery – the average salary for an Israeli worker dropped from NIS 12,026 in April to NIS 11,753 in May. Now there is a 3% recovery. The average salary in the economy for all employees increased by 3.5% to NIS 11,786 per month.