Salary - Informal Study 1

[LPPE]

That time of year again!

To all the PE's out there working for someone else-

When you officially found out you passed the test, did you get an immediate raise or bonus? And if not, when yearly reviews were held, did you get a raise then?

If you did recieve a raise or bonus, how much was it? I'm sure few want to give exact numbers for what increase they received (or maybe you do), but percentages would be a good response, too.

Any comments?

 

[Rich2001]

I knew that my employer would not. Therefore, I had my ducks in a row,I changed jobs, with a 20% pay increase, three weeks after receiving the letter stating that I passed.

 

[coloradobridges]

I got about a 20% raise due to passing and other milestones. For me it didn't come the day I could show them my letter, it was just a factor in my annual review.

 

[Lutfi]

I can speak from both sides of my mouth because I used to be an employee and now I am an employer. As an employer, I value our engineers getting their PE and we promote them and help them in the following ways because we value the PE and the increased level of responsibility that comes with it:

a. Pay for their application
b. Pay for them to take refresher courses
c. Pay for their time to sit to take the exam and in many cases, a day or two before the exam so that they can be better prepared.
d. Pay for the license fee (annual or biannual)
e. Pay for them to join NSPE and local/state professional organization
f. Buy and pay for test and reference material and keep it in library
g. Most important, reward the passing of the exam with a raise. The raise is driven by many factors such as current market, what other companies pay and the fee structure of the company and the level of experience the engineer brings to the table.

I cringe at the idea because an engineer who just passed his PE, assuming 4 years of experience, feels like he will get an automatic 20% raise. I know companies out there does it and they can afford it. I have paid in the past non PE the same if not more because they are more valuable to my company than PEs. To me passing a PE exam only tells me that an engineer passed and exam. Being a PE is a whole lot more than that. It is all about responsibility, maturity, taking lead, being a leader and increasing the productivity and profitability of the company while lowering its risks and improving relations with clientele.

Yes we do give raises but no automatic that ranged from 10 to 20%. But all of it depends on the individual as I stated above. If an engineer does not get the recognition he deserves for passing and reaching this milestone, he should look for another position. I am strong proponent of licensing and promoting professional growth.

I also I must say that I am deeply disappointed with the quality of some of the engineers who are entering the market. I think Colleges are not preparing them properly. This makes training them for me as an employer more costly and slows down production and increased risk. I have heard fellow manager and firm owners making the statement that they do not like entry level because of my earlier statement plus they see it as if they are training fresh engineers for the next employer. This is truly sad but it is reality.

I thin any engineer who passes his PE is entitled for recognition (monetary and status wise). However, keep in min that you just got your PE and if you are anything like, I am still learning! Do not let it get to your head. I was humbled by one of the senior engineers that I worked with when I passed mine. He said how many year of PE experience do you have? I said I just passed it. He replied, this is exactly my point! Stay focused and things will happen naturally as you grow.

I hope my statements above are taken as my loud thoughts.

 

[JStephen]

I was working for a (fairly small) construction company where my boss was the only other PE. When I got my PE license, I got the title of VP (although no real change in responsibilities) and a decent salary increase- seems like it was 20% or something, but that's been a while.

 

[Ron]

Lutfi...well said. Our approach mirrors yours to a great degree.

 

[BigH]

Wouldn't the pay raise be relative to the added benefit you can actually provide the employer? When I got my P.Eng. in Ontario, I got a raise but it was coupled with a change to a "higher" level of responsibility that I was getting anyway. When I got my P.E., there was nothing for it - why? My Employer didn't see any benefit to him, in Canada, on my having a US license. I did the U.S. license for MY benefit.

 

[JedClampett]

BigH, that's one way of looking at it. Another way is that when you market your firm, it sure looks good if a high percentage of your technical staff is registered. Where I used to work, the owners sealed all the drawings, so having me registered was of no tangible value to them. But they were very supportive of engineers getting registered, using bonuses, promotions, threats, etc., to encourage us.

 

[BigH]

JedClampett has a good and valid point - There's no question that having your license is a benefit for you and for the employer but a "right" to an increase because you have it, I just don't see it. Engineers, to practice as an engineer, are to be licensed. Else, you aren't an "engineer" according to the law. Now, that you have the license, you should see your level of responsibility increase, your overall value increase and the clients will benefit from this - hence, you should start getting better raises hand in hand with the increase in responsibility and value to the company.
The owner signing all the drawings isn't correct either in that for him to sign, he must have had them prepared under his direction - if you as the P.E. had them done under your supervision, why was the owner then signing?
Sadly, it seems that this point of the license is much more "home" to the civil/geotechnical/structural types than many other engineering disciplines.

 

[connect2]

Licencing alone is not sufficient reason for a substaintial (20% ???) pay raise where we come from. Having another P.Eng on staff is a good thing but only if they can cover the additional work that will need to be found to cover their salary and now increased (20% ???) salary. The licence doesn't allow an individual to practice 'Engineering' with the 'Public', the 'Certificate of Authorization' does. And being named as a 'Professional Engineer" both to the Licencing Body and the Insurer as one of the named Professional Engineers responsible for the Cerificate of Authorization... well thats a different matter, you have to buy a piece of that action. Having said all that we go out of our way to get Enginners in Training licenced ( ie we pay and spend the TIME),... well you learn something everyday it seems, thats why I like this business.

 

[HgTX]

'Nother thread here:
thread731-107124

Hg