Median Pay of CSR Workers in UK is $80-$120K

Of surveyed CSR workers in the UK in 2007, 15 percent earned more than $160,000 and 4 percent earned more than $240,000. The median income was $80,000-$120,000, with 38 percent of salaries in this range.

Dated March 2008, the first-ever survey of UK CSR salaries was conducted in late 2007 by the Acona consultancy, Acre Resources recruiting and the Ethical Performance newsletter.

Company vs. Consulting Salaries

The survey shows that even with their bonuses, consultants tended to earn less than CSR employees in companies. This suggests that companies prefer to have the sensitive CSR function in-house and are willing to pay more for this choice. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that the head of CSR in UK companies tends to report directly to the company CEO or a key member of the Board of Directors.

The relatively lower salaries of consultants could also reflect a high level of competition in the UK among consultancies leading to “overservicing” of clients. Or it could mean consultants are not generating sufficient value for companies. Or it could simply be a hedonic indicator that workers prefer to have the flexibility and greater freedom afforded by the consultancy relationship.

The two main activities in 2007 reported by both UK firms and UK consultancies are (1) environmental issues (climate change) and (2) preparing CSR reports.

Industries Represented

Of the 281 respondents to the survey, one-half are from corporations, one-quarter from consultancies and the remainder are from NGOs, government agencies or “other”. The great majority are based in the London area. The industries of the company-based CSR employees are as follows, ranked in order of percentage of employees:

Banking and Finance 18%
Retailing 12
Consumer Goods 10
Media 7
Construction 6
Support Services 6
Telecoms 6
Natural Resources 5
Transport & Utilities 5
Industrials 4
Leisure 4
Technology 3
Engineering 2
Accounting/Consultant 1
Health 1

The #1 rank of banking and finance on the list may be a surprise to a U.S. observer because CSR has not been very visible in the operations of major financial institutions in the United States. One U.S. exception is the Equator Principles initiative that was spearheaded by the Citi Foundation in New York. In the UK, major banks have for some years been producing leaflets available in bank lobbies showing what they are doing for the environment or society.

The shape of today’s global CSR movement was created 40 years ago in the United States, but data on CSR employment shows that CSR has taken root faster in Europe and the UK. Because CSR has been around so long in the UK, middle-level CSR employees may have been working their entire careers in CSR. This is much rarer in the United States at large companies.

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