If you’ve been wondering how your paycheck fares against other industries around the country, an expert has done the math.
Spoiler alert: 2024 was a bit of a mixed bag, with some industries cashing in big while others barely scraping through with some extra cash.
Brad Olsen, Chief Executive of Infometrics, revealed to RNZ that healthcare and social assistance workers took the crown in 2024, with a whopping 7.9% pay increase.
According to Olsen, this spike is thanks to some long-awaited pay agreements finally kicking in, alongside ongoing demand for health services.
“Higher pay rates for the broader health workforce show through in the numbers,” he told the outlet.
Forestry and mining followed in second place with an impressive 6.2% increase. But it's not all sunshine and rainbows, Olsen said that job cuts in forestry’s lower-paying roles likely bumped up the average.
“This industry group is a small one, and part of the reason for the larger percentage increase may have been that lower-earning roles in forestry were lost over the last year - we know there have been job losses in forestry - due to lower commodity prices and weaker export potential," he said.
Education landed in third place, with wages climbing 5.7%, also due to long-awaited pay agreements.
At the other end of the list, food services and accommodation workers saw a minimal 1.2% bump. Likely due to a tough year, with less customers, businesses shutting down, and plenty of job losses.
"As a result, with more people looking for jobs in this area but fewer jobs going, there wasn't a lot of pressure for wages to increase," Olsen added.
Not far ahead, professional services saw a 1.7% increase, while manufacturing wasn’t much better, with just a 2.1% rise on average.
What’s it looking like for the year ahead? Honestly, it’s a bit of a mixed bag, too.
A Robert Walters survey of over 7,750 businesses and workers across New Zealand and Australia revealed that only 62% of Kiwi companies plan to hand out pay raises in 2025.
On the flip side, Kiwis are a bit less optimistic, with just 57% of employees expecting a raise to come in the next 12 months.
Whether you’re feeling hopeful or just crossing your fingers for better luck in 2025, let’s hope there’s a bit more - in the bank - to look forward to.
