Photo credit: State Street Loan
The median salary at PR firms increased 5.9% from $85,000 in 2013 to $90,000 in 2014, according to the 2015 Salary Survey by the PR Week/Bloom, Gross & Associates. Higher pay may be partly due to the fact that PR professionals are assuming a broader range of duties, including strategic planning and research, content creation, and digital/social media marketing, the research points out.
The survey of over 1,000 PR pros also reveals a troubling salary discrepancy between men and women. Among workers with less than five years of experience, men earn $5,500 more than women a year. For those with over five year’s experience, the discrepancy increases to $42,000. Sixty-three percent of survey participants were women.
One reason for at least some of the pay gap: Men participating in the survey were older on average so may hold more senior positions. The median age for males was 43, compared to 35 for women. But the pay gap cannot be explained solely by longevity.
PR Pay Inequality Called Widespread
Women in the industry say pay inequality is pervasive in PR.
“The data is troubling, but likely not surprising to anyone who’s spent any time in the industry,” Rachel Kay, president of Rachel Kay PR told ATTN:.
Clients don’t want to pay her the same amount as male-run firms, Gini Dietrich, CEO of Arment Dietrich Inc., told ATTN:. In addition, she often declines speaking engagements when event organizers refuse to pay her the same amount as men. Besides receiving more pay, men hold most leadership posts at large PR firms, she adds.
Industry observers say women are less likely to negotiate salaries, one reason for the pay gap. Kay hopes the millennial generation, which is more assertive, will close the pay disparity.
Women in the business called on senior management to offer equal pay for equal work and encouraged women in PR to demand their fair share.
“In addition, we need to embrace the fact that we have a unique industry that skews significantly female, rather than use that as an excuse to abuse the very demographic that helps us thrive,” Kay says.
More Evidence of Pay Disparity
The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) State of the Profession 2015 survey in the UK also shows a pay gap between men and women. The £8,483 discrepancy cannot be explained by any other factor such as length of service, seniority, parenthood, or a higher prevalence of part-time work among women, it concludes.
Gender is the third largest influence on PR salaries — larger than education background, sector of practice, graduate status, and full-time/part-time status.
Incidentally, PR executive ranks as the fifth most stressful job in the U.S., according to CareerCast’s annual list of the most-stressful jobs in America. It states: “Public relations executives are masters of damage control, thus need to be able to think and act quickly under stress. The profession lives in the public eye, and it’s also one of the professions attracting the most college students, which makes landing and keeping a good job that much more difficult.”
The median salary PR executive salary is $57,550, it says.
Bottom Line: Although PR salaries are rising and demand for talent is robust, women are paid appreciably less than men. It’s time for companies, not-for-profits, and PR agencies to adopt the equal pay for equal work policy. Companies can establish themselves as choice employers by ensuring equal pay, a desirable position as competition for top talent increases.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
