This year shows a clear gender pay gap still exists with the average male, full-time salary being 2% more than that of their female counterparts for full/fellow members. However, the reverse is true at student and affiliate level where women earn more than men.

The gender gap even falls through to bonuses - among those working full-time, 32% of women compared to 35% of males received a bonus within the last year. The majority (72%) of those working part-time, work between 21 and 35 hours per week on average.

Private sector members do better in terms of receipt of a bonus: 33% of those in the private sector (in accountancy firms) and 39% in the private sector (non-accountancy firms) compared to 14% in the not for profit sector received a bonus in the last year. 21% in the public sector received a bonus.

The study found full-time salaries for AAT full and fellow members working in London are an average of 48% higher at £34,000 compared to those working in the North East, who on average earn £23,000.

Gender pay gap

This year shows a clear gender pay gap still exists with the average male, full-time salary being 2% more than that of their female counterparts for full/fellow members. However, the reverse is true at student and affiliate level where we see women earning more than men. Amongst those working full-time, 32% of women compared to 35% of males received a bonus within the last year. The majority (72%) of those working part-time, work between 21 and 35 hours per week on average.

Private sector members do better in terms of bonuses: 33% of those in the private sector (in accountancy firms) and 39% in the private sector (non-accountancy firms) compared to 14% in the not for profit sector received a bonus in the last year. 21% in the public sector received a bonus.

Both average salaries and bonuses go up as company size increases. A third (33%) of those in small companies (one to 10 employees) received a bonus last year but only 29% of those in large companies (250+ employees) did so. A third (32%) of AAT members said they had received a bonus within the last year, while the majority (83%) said that they feel secure in their current job.

There is a also a gender pay gap for AAT’s full and fellow members who work full-time (men are paid 2% more than women, on average). However, women earn more than men at student (9%) and affiliate (5%) level.

The lowest average salary is paid by accountancy firms at £20,000, while in not-for-profits the average is £25,000, and those working in companies receive average £23,500. The average salary in the public sector is £21,000.

Some trainees also receive incentives for completing the AAT accounting qualifications or becoming a full ATT full member, with 17% of respondents benefiting from this.

In the public sector, four in 10 (40%) are able to work flexi-time while only 16% get the same flexibility in the private sector, including at accountancy firms and private business.

Career progression

Three quarters of members are planning to stay with their current employer in the next 12 months. The desire to seek promotion reduced by almost half after age 35.

By industry sector, those in the not for profit sector are much less likely to be seeking a promotion (14% compared to 23% in the private sector and 26% in the public sector).

Despite many ATT qualifieds saying they planned to stay at their current employer, job satisfaction has remained virtually static with only a 1% improvement on the last survey in 2015. However, eight out of ten (78%) of full/fellow members are very/quite satisfied with their job, compared to 73% of students.

But this varies across region with job satisfaction highest in Wales at 83% compared to just over two thirds (69%) of those working in London expressing high satisfaction levels.

There are over 4,000 AAT Licensed Accountants currently practising in the UK. An AAT Licensed Accountant is an AAT full or fellow member licensed to offer self-employed accountancy, taxation or related consultancy services to the public. The annual survey covered around12,000 AAT members.

The AAT Salary and Career Survey 2017, sponsored by Avado, is here. 

Report by Pat Sweet and Sara White