Emailed job advert received today Required NEBOSH Certification (what level not given) Degree in Engineering High volume manufacturing experience Location Guildford/Farnborough Salary ......£30-32k!!!! Guess they don't want much!! And you are supposed to pay for a house in that part of the world on £32k!! Still I guess you get to keep all of your Child Benefits!!!

I have a NEBOSH Dip, an MSc and BSc (Hons) and I am earning £32k and work in manufacturing with 7 years experience in H&S. Although I am acutely aware I am under paid, TBH - I'm quite happy I have a job at the moment, and I'm gaining valuable expierence and my employer isnt shy about further training. I would love more money, but wouldnt we all. For me at the moment - job security, experience and further training are more valuable to be in the short/med term.

That is fair money for a Nebosh bod. Jon

Can you buy a house anywhere for that ?. It used to be 3.5 times your wages so that would be £112K.

5% deposit is enough and you wouldn't need that sized salary, a salary in the 40s and a good credit history will allow you to borrow around £180k - £200k. Unfortunately this equates to a 2-bed flat where I am!

It only becomes a bad salary when someone takes the job. If it's not workable - don't apply. There were 200+ jobs on HASAWA Magazine pages last week with 150+ on SHP (some will be doubled up) but lets say 100+ SHE Jobs out there at the minute from 25k to 100k. As Zimmy has mentioned its known that certain areas of the UK pay+/- than others and although I agree the OP salary is poor for that region it could be worse (Zimmy's Wales example). The big bucks are currently around Aberdeen - If you want to chase them you have to move. There will only ever be x amount of big paying firms on your doorstep. I moved 224 miles for my current role.

Im on 24k and get company car, I have Nebosh General( company wont pay for any further training as a apparantly im so good . W.T.H!) I over see all health and safety for nearly 70 sites in uk , write all training , do all risk assesments and have to audit all sites twice a year. In fact do everything imaginable all by my self. I manage safety reps at all these sites. Is my wage rubbish? , as I feel it is and think im getting mugged off. Let me know your thoughts

In this current climate I would say that a £32k is a reasonable salary, even with those qualifications. It's a buyers market! I earn £32k, I'm well qualified (NVQ 4, Degree and HNC Engineering) but there aren't many of those well paid positions around. I may be overworked, and underpaid, but I am grateful of my job. Surely it wont be forever?!

Not sure if I like being called a monkey but, been called worse I guess :-)

Guess I have been pretty fortunate throughout my working life after reading some of the salaries mentioned; however if the worst happened and I found myself surplus to requirements at my present post..................then without a shadow of a doubt I would be back at the sharp end in operations rather than jockey for safety positions so under valued. Total respect for the lads n lassies doing these jobs and hopefully someday you will get an honest days pay for an honest days graft. (P.S Excellent post Motorhead, gave me right good chuckle that did)

I was laughing when I posted it. If I didn't find some humour I think I would cry. Andy

In a previous role I had to assess competence of those managing risk in various sectors. I was quite surprised at the significant quantity of Safety Managers with very little formal H&S qualifications. Certainly NEBOSH quals were generally known and held by some, mainly NGC. Some senior management figures had very little grasp of what a NEBOSH Dip entailed or that it was equivalent to a degree. I know of several HSEQ Managers on 40k/50k/60k + with 'only' an IOSH MS Cert and Internal Audit Cert + bags of experience, enthusiasm and were natural communicators. These guys also managed people very well and IMO did a great job which was reflected in improving safety KPIs. Who am I to conclude that they were not competent...One in particular I still consider to be one of the most switched people I know. My point – of the 74 companies on my books at that time, approximately 40% had NEBOSH NGC people in Safety related roles. Most were IOSH MS in conjunction with sector experience and in some cases held a relevant degree. I can count around 7 or 8 that either had Safety related MSc or were working towards one. NEBOSH Dips were a rare beast to spot. Remuneration was not relevant to me, however from what I gathered, 32k would be considered an undesirable wage in Aberdeen, however average to good in Glasgow or Birmingham, dependent on sector of course! In oil and gas land 32k would be considered poor for a manager, construction good. All relative to housing cost of course. A 2 bedroom house for lease in Aberdeen in a nice area will set you back £1200 a month…at least.

I think its dreadful but it depends on your circumstances, location, debts, family size, working partner? loans, credit cards, mortgage/rent, hobbies, social habits, lifestyle, Primani or Armani....... If I was 18 and single it would be ace, right now it would not cover my Sky subscription. BUT (and there are a zillion other posts on this) You have a Gen Cert, there is generally a cap with this level (Yes, I know others who earn a bucket load with only a Gen Cert) but generally speaking there is a cap. Lisareed. I sort of see what your trying to say but of course I DO expect an uplift in my next role or why have I applied in the 1st place? I have moved 4 times within my SHE career, each time for a circa 5k rise. I would not put pen to paper for a role offering less than current unless prospects were higher and only then would I move sideways - for a very, very short time.

People, have you ever thought of working Offshore in the Oil & Gas Industry? I have been reading the comments on wages :( regards Chris

Don't get stuck down that rabbit hole - It's not always the case. If the Co takes it seriously has a great record, buy in etc etc etc why would they pay a lot for SHE Advice? I have earned more at Co's that are a million miles from where they need to be and need a step change.

A sad reflection of the state of the UK job market as a whole unfortunately - an employers market

I see many jobs in London offering around the £30k mark. Unless you live in London and already 'own' a home, I can't see how it is a viable position? The SE is a particularly expensive place to live!

I think the original salary on the advert is pretty pathetic because I was earning circa £33k back in 2003. At the time I was working for the NHS in Leeds, so a regulated/banded salary regime. At the time I didn't have a degree. So for this advert to be paying less money 10years later, requiring a degree in engineering and based in a pretty expensive part of the world - shows the value some organisations put on a safety and for a person to give the advice/undertake the work. While there is great merit in compromising on salaries etc for the sake of a nice place to live, house and friends etc - I think on this occasion somebody is having a joke.

At the end of the day, working in H&S is a lot better than working down the sharp end of a mine shaft?