Well this debate has certainly attracted much attention!! My turn...
I agree with Dave's opinion, in fact we both started in the same position
together. Now a couple of years later we are both doing well and have made
great progress - and our salaries have increased accordingly.
I think the key issue here is that the GI-industry is not that unlike the
general IT-industry, in that if you wish to have a successful career you
must be willing to start at the bottom. If you have the enthusiasm,
committment, and focus then it will not take long before you start moving
upwards. I started on £6/hour doing basic digitising work, and now I am
earning a very good salary for my age, being a technical and policy adviser
to central government. Was I just lucky to get the break? Perhaps an
aspect was timing and knowing people, but I have spent the last few years
learning and pushing myself. In summary, if you can afford to survive on a
low wage to get started in your career, then it is worth it - if you try
hard enough to progress!!
A second issue - a lot of advertisements on this list are placed by
recruitment agencies. Since I live with a GIS recruiter, I can state that
negative feedback over the salaries on offer will not make a difference to
the wage offered (since the recruiters are told by the company hiring the
wage available). It will simply drive recruiters away from using this
mailing list - which in turn will make finding specialist employment even
harder if we loose this resource!! So please dont 'scare away' potential
employers in the GIS market - it sounds as though we need all we can get!!
Some of you may not be aware there is a parallel GIS list for discussions,
[log in to unmask], perhaps negative comments would be more appropriate
within this!!
Rich
>From: DAVE HUME <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: DAVE HUME <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Date: Thu, 10 Jul 2003 19:18:19 +0100
>
>I started off at £6 an hour and now within 1.5 years I’m earning over
>£20k and expecting to do very well in years to come.
>
>I think that starting off at the bottom has rewards like learning new
>software and business admin, stuff that would cost £100s if not £1000s
>if you were to go on courses.
>
>I think that if you can live off it then take it – you soon find that by
>having a job and experience you can then chose you path.
>
>Not having a go, don’t want any backlash – and as one guy said this is
>for posting jobs – just thought I’d throw my sixpence in!!
>
>
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