There's the temptation is to assume that Covid-19 has changed everything when it comes to PR salaries. However, whilst those who have been furloughed, or sadly, made redundant, will have been impacted, for the majority of people, their 2019 salaries will be an extremely reliable indicator of their 2020 salary.

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen businesses adopt remote and flexible working practices at an unprecedented rate. Victoria Buchanan, drector and head of PR at real estate agency Savills, points out: “This time has shown a lot of people how well they can work from home, but many also like being in the office; they like the in-person collaboration, the fact that they can go to the gym at lunchtime, and be an active part of a work culture. Having a balance is important for mental health”.

Sarah Leembruggen, managing director at search consultancy The Works Search, says: “Whilst our survey shows encouraging results for employers, with the majority of our respondents being satisfied with their pay, our working world has undergone such a dramatic shift in this past couple of months that the focus is now very much on the way we work. It is important for employers to communicate how we will be working as we prepare to return to the office (or not). Now that we have all tried and tested the WFH model, remote and flexible working will be at the forefront of every employer and employee’s mind.”

Below is a selection of stats showing agency and in-house salary trends according to The Works' Annual Salary Guide 2020. The time period of the survey was January – December 2019 and the comparisons are to 2018 salaries.

Who got the biggest pay rise last year?

In-house salary trends

Agency side salary trends

In-house employee benefits

Agency side employee benefits

Methodology

The Works Search checked over 3,000 database records and polled 350 corporate comms professionals to share insights on their pay and company benefits, in particular the value they place on flexible working options.