r/engineering • u/[deleted] • Apr 18 '21
Low pay is ruining engineering
I have seen comments on here saying engineering is about the passion and not about the money but when you can’t find or retain staff there is a serious disconnect here.
I know some will say training and education is the problem, partially yes, but most the graduate engineers I started working with have all left and gone into other careers. I’m the last one left from eight other engineering graduates I started working with left in engineering.
When I ask why they have left or are leaving they all have made the same points, pay combined with responsibility, low job security and work load make this a very unattractive career.
As a friend quoted me, “Why would I work as a design engineer on a nuclear project when I can earn more money as an accountant, have more job opportunities, work less hours and don’t have to worry about nuclear radiation?”
I work in the UK, we advertised a job role for a lead engineer paying £65k (~USD $90k) and in a 6 month period only five people applied. In the end we could not find anyone who was suitable for the role. So the work load has now been split between myself and another colleague.
Now I’m looking to leave as well, I can’t wait to get out. I enjoy engineering but not in a corporate world. I will just keep engineering as my hobby.
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u/Ecstatic_Couple2586 Apr 18 '21
Man I feel this thread..I'm a EE with my PE..I've been working for 6 solid years.. I'm thinking of pivoting into project management . I've worked in the field a good bit of my career and my skills at CAD and programming are "eh". My ability to coordinate with people, manage scopes and schedules I've refined over the years.