Salaries are predicted to steadily increase this year as travel recruitment continues to recover from the impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks.
AA Appointments‘ 2007 salary forecast paints a generally positive picture for the year despite potential blips from the proposed mergers of Thomas Cook and MyTravel and TUI and First Choice.
Managing director John Tolmie said: “The good news is salaries are increasing and it’s demand that is pushing salaries upwards.”
The highest predicted leap across the business and leisure retail and tour operating sectors is 13.6% for retail agents with computer reservation system skills and up to two years’ experience based in the north of England and Wales.
The predicted salary for this position is £12,500.
In comparison, salaries for retail agents with CRS skills and up to two years’ experience in London are not expected to rise this year from £14,000, while those in the south of England, excluding London, are forecast to increase by up to 12% to £13,500.
Business travel salaries around the country remain higher than retail agent salaries due to a lack of suitably qualified candidates.
The highest rise in this sector is predicted in the Midlands and south Wales region, where salaries for travel management company sales managers are expected to increase by 10.6% to an average of £36,500.
The salary rises follow a general trend of increasing pay after three years of stagnation directly after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
However, the trade is being warned this year’s merger of the big four may hit wages. Tolmie said: “It’s unlikely salaries will fall but they may not rise as fast. It may turn into an employers’ market.”
Much will depend on how many redundancies there are and in which sectors, he added.