The Association of Professional Engineers

and Geoscientists of British Columbia

2012

Report On Members
Compensation And Benefits

NTRODUCTION

Introduction

We are pleased to present the findings of a comprehensive compensation and benefits survey of APEGBC
members undertaken by the Association in June 2012. The most recent member compensation survey was
undertaken in June 2010.
The primary intent of this report is to provide information on base annual compensation, total annual
compensation and other non-monetary benefits earned by APEGBC members employed in full-time
positions in British Columbia.
The best indicator of professional compensation is obtained through an Employment Responsibility
Evaluation. Members can refer to the Benchmark Employment Descriptions to confirm the accuracy of
their responsibility point level assessment. Both can be found at www.apeg.bc.ca/compensationsurvey.
Section A provides base salary and total annual compensation values by responsibility point level for the
overall dataset and by industry sector. Section A also includes information on total other compensation,
working hours, benefits and perquisites.
Section B provides secondary demographic and other informational tables that may be of interest to some
readers, including compensation reports presented by degree received, year of graduation, member status,
size of organization and gender.

Note: The compensation survey data and exhibits included within this report are intended
to provide the reader with general benchmarks and be used as a guideline for comparing his or
her compensation with overall industry values. Compensation values should be determined
and calculated by the level of responsibility for the position. Therefore, the prediction of
compensation based on any one factor is difficult due to market forces and general economic
conditions; and caution should be exercised.

2012 APEGBC. All Rights Reserved.

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

The Association of Professional Engineers

and Geoscientists of British Columbia

2012
Report On Members

Compensation And Benefits

Table of Contents
Survey Methodology.........................................................................................................................................4
Section A - Results............................................................................................................................................5
Reported Base Salary and Total Annual Compensation by Responsibility Level................................. 5
Reported Base Salary by Industry............................................................................................................... 6
Working Hours and Other Compensation................................................................................................ 8
Employee Benefits and Perquisites.............................................................................................................. 9
Vacation Entitlements................................................................................................................................... 9

Section B - Survey Demographics and Other Compensation Tables

Employment Status.....................................................................................................................................10
Reported Base Salary and Total Annual Compensation by Responsibility Level and Gender.........10
Reported Base Salary by Bachelors Degree.............................................................................................11
Reported Base Salary by Graduate Degree Received..............................................................................12
Reported Base Salary and Responsibility Level by Year of Graduation...............................................13
Compensation by Size of Organization....................................................................................................14
Reported Base Salary by Member Status and Gender............................................................................14
Compensation by Region and Gender Including Non-BC Respondents............................................15

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

SURVEY METHODOLOGY
Practising APEGBC members were invited to participate in an online survey of members compensation by
email in June 2012. A total of 2,424 responses were received.
The primary intent of this compensation survey is to provide data for BC-based APEGBC members. As such
the majority of tables in this report present information for this subset of the entire sample. Section B also
contains selected reports for the entire valid data set including respondents from the rest of Canada and
around the world.
As in previous years, the analyses dealing with compensation use a subset of the total respondents; members
who indicated that they were full-time students, retired, employed part-time or unemployed were removed
from the data set. All respondents who did not indicate both compensation data and responsibility point
level were also removed. Also, respondents with reported base salary and total compensation of less than
$25,000 are removed. The remaining British Columbia-only compensation subset is comprised of 1,476
valid responses. Tables representing base salary or total compensation are based on a smaller sample since
cases that reported a total compensation less than the base salary are removed; the remaining subset for
these tables includes 1,242 valid responses.
The survey asked respondents to provide information on their base annual compensation, defined strictly as
base salary. A number of tables in this report also provide total annual compensation values defined as base
annual compensation plus taxable benefits such as medical, insurance and pension contributions paid by the
employer as well as cash compensation such as bonuses, commission, profit sharing and paid overtime.
Compensation definitions are as follows:
Mean numerical average of compensation values;
Median 50% of values are below and 50% of values are above this compensation;
Low Decile 10% of values are below and 90% of values are above this compensation;
Low Quartile 25% of values are below and 75% of values are above this compensation;
High Quartile 75% of values are below and 25% of values are above this compensation;
High Decile 90% of values are below and 10% of values are above this compensation.
In many tables, both median and mean compensation information is provided. Median figures are often
a better indicator of compensation changes and ranges since median values are less affected by very high
and very low responses. However, mean values provide a true arithmetic average, which may be of interest
to some readers. Low and high decile information is not provided when a response sample is less than 10.
Additionally, low and high quartile information is not provided when a sample is less than 25 respondents.
Similarly, mean and median values have not been reported for samples sizes that are less than five.
The size of the 2012 return sample (2,424) decreased over that obtained in 2010 (4,897respondents). While
a sufficient sample was obtained to validate many of the analyses, again, caution should be exercised when
examining smaller data subsets of the entire sample.

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

SECTION A - RESULTS
REPORTED BASE SALARY and TOTAL ANNUAL COMPENSATION
BY RESPONSIBILITY LEVEL
Reported base salary and total annual compensation by responsibility point level is illustrated in Exhibit 1a and
Exhibit 1b respectively. These analyses provide both low and high, decile and quartile values to illustrate the range of
base salary and total annual compensation paid to individuals within the same responsibility point range.
The median base salary for all respondents and all responsibility point levels is $87,500, and ranges from a low of
$57,250 at 200-249 point to $187,500 at the 800+ point level. Compared to 2010 median base salary values, most
point level ranges have recorded an increase, and the median base salary for the entire sample has increased 2.9%
over the two-year period.
Exhibit 1a - Reported Base Salary by Responsibility Level June 2012

Increase
Responsibility
Total Median
Low
Low
2012
High
High
2010 2012/2010
Point Range
Jobs Points
Mean
Decile
Quartile
Median
Quartile
Decile
Median
Median
Less than 200
61
178
57,141
43,400
49,700
58,000
63,000
71,904
53,500
8.4%
200-249
115 223 59,842 50,156 54,000 57,250 64,000 75,000 58,000
-1.3%
250-299
130 277 68,012 52,200 58,041 66,000 75,000 84,000 62,350 5.9%
300-349
165 318 78,268 61,000 66,875 75,000 85,500 100,000 72,000 4.2%
350-399
153 370 89,006 68,800 76,625 85,400 95,990 115,000 82,000 4.1%
400-449
121 425 94,731 71,543 80,000 91,520 105,000 116,560 90,000 1.7%
450-499
114 476 101,646 72,750 84,875 100,500 110,000 129,500 98,800 1.7%
500-549
109 518 109,532 86,000 94,750 106,000 120,000 135,000 102,000 3.9%
550-599
81 573 117,258 90,000 100,200 114,000 128,691 154,000 110,000 3.6%
600-649
57 623 118,335 77,376 103,500 120,000 136,500 145,200 118,000 1.7%
650-699
54 680 143,625 85,559 115,000 127,563 166,013 200,000 122,000 4.6%
700-749
41 718 154,721 90,000 120,000 140,000 187,500 214,800 124,250 12.7%
750-799
33 770 182,867 104,400 137,500 165,000 191,000 273,000 140,000 17.9%
800+*
8
850
224,000 N/S N/S
187,500 N/S N/S N/A
N/A
Total
1,242 398 95,732 57,000 69,000 87,500 112,000 140,000 85000 2.9%
N/S - Insufficient Sample Size, N/A - Not Available

*due to the very few number of respondents in the 800-849 and 850+ point level

Exhibit 1b - Reported Total Annual Compensation by Responsibility Level June 2012

Increase
Responsibility
Total Median
Low
Low
2012
High
High
2010 2012/2010
Point Range
Jobs Points
Mean
Decile
Quartile
Median
Quartile
Decile
Median
Median
Less than 200
61
178
59,787
45,000
51,250
58,500
65,750
80,000
55,000
6.4%
200-249
115 223 63,604 52,300 55,000 59,000 70,000 84,400 61,000
-3.3%
250-299
130 277 74,863 55,000 62,000 71,063 80,000 94,000 67,000 6.1%
300-349
165 318 86,842 64,000 72,000 82,040 96,750 114,800 77,000 6.5%
350-399
153 370 104,637 72,000 81,869 92,000 110,500 133,526 87,700 4.9%
400-449
121 425 107,124 74,900 85,000 102,000 120,000 141,097 98,000 4.1%
450-499
114 476 117,380 81,250 91,765 109,000 127,500 150,000 108,000 0.9%
500-549
109 518 135,017 90,000 104,750 120,000 138,250 162,546 114,000 5.3%
550-599
81 573 135,595 96,000 110,000 125,000 148,968 180,000 124,549 0.4%
600-649
57 623 146,927 78,800 106,611 133,000 166,500 211,250 133,000 0.0%
650-699
54 680 161,847 112,500 125,000 150,000 180,000 237,500 140,000 7.1%
700-749
41 718 207,833 113,200 143,044 170,000 260,500 338,400 160,594 5.9%
750-799
33 770 223,790 119,400 147,500 184,000 260,500 380,000 158,625 16.0%
800+
8
850
343,250 N/S N/S
260,000 N/S N/S N/A
N/A
Total
1242 398 111,789 58,500 73,893 95,950 127,034 166,741 130,000 2.5%
N/S - Insufficient Sample Size, N/A - Not Available
2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

REPORTED BASE SALARY BY INDUSTRY

Exhibit 2 presents the distribution of reported base salary by industry. Consulting Services comprises
the largest sector with 45.7% of the respondents. The next largest reporting sector was Utilities/
Communications/Transportation at 11.6% of respondents followed by Government at 11.5%.
A comparison of median base salary by industry sector to the overall median for all sectors yields the
following: Management Consulting +37.1%, Eng/Geo Consulting -5.7%, Utilities/Communication/
Transportation +3.4%, Government +2.8%, Primary and Resource Industries +14.7%, Construction and
Manufacturing -2.9%, High Technology -5.1%, and Other 1.7%.
Exhibit 2 - Reported Base Salary by Industry - June 2012

Industry

Total
Jobs

% of
Total
Mean

Lower
Decile

Lower
Quartile
Median

Upper
Quartile

Upper
Decile

All Sectors
1242
100.0% 95,732 57,000
69,000
87,500
112,000
140,000
Consulting Services
568
45.7% 93,900 55,000
63,295
82,000
110,000
140,200
General Management
Consulting 17 1.4% 143,894
57,200 83,750 120,000 189,350 310,000
Engineering Consulting
503
40.5% 90,926 55,000
63,227
80,000
110,000
137,200
Building Science 15

1.2% 68,048 45,000
55,000
65,000
73,725
112,000
Chemical
8
.6%
96,625
N/S
N/S
102,000
N/S
N/S
Civil

60
4.8% 88,562 54,000
61,250
73,100
109,000
144,500
Construction
6
.5%
98,667
N/S
N/S
97,500
N/S
N/S
Electrical/Electronic 50

4.0% 87,245 56,460
60,375
77,960
108,040
133,170
Engineering Physics

2
.2% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Environmental

39
3.1% 86,186 54,000
69,000
82,000
105,000
135,000
Fire Protection 4

.3% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Food/Beverage 1

.1% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Forest

4
.3% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Geological

2
.2% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Geotechnical

38
3.1% 78,605 53,600
61,000
70,000
86,250
117,840
Groundwater

1
.1% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Industrial/Manufacturing
11
.9%
100,076
63,960
80,000
90,640
125,000
153,400
Land Development
5
.4%
122,800
N/S
N/S
55,000
N/S
N/S
Marine/Naval
9
.7%
70,650
N/S
N/S
66,150
N/S
N/S
Materials Handling 10

.8% 94,240 55,100 N/S
71,500 N/S
221,700
Mechanical

46
3.7% 87,539 54,400
65,000
78,000
108,741
128,900
Metallurgical/Materials
6
.5%
123,667
N/S
N/S
105,500
N/S
N/S
Mining

34
2.7% 99,211 59,000
63,170
87,750
122,500
170,000
Petroleum (Energy)
12
1.0%
104,845
52,150
N/S
105,040
N/S
174,300
Power (Energy)

23
1.9% 94,637 50,800
80,000
89,250
110,000
145,000
Project Management
6
.5%
167,050
N/S
N/S
152,400
N/S
N/S
Pulp & Paper
4
.3%
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Structural

59
4.8% 86,615 54,000
58,000
80,000
110,000
127,000
Surveying/Geomatics

1
.1% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Transportation

22
1.8% 95,157 59,300
64,950
83,524
118,500
140,970
Water Resources 15

1.2% 93,997 62,792 N/S
92,580 N/S
131,400
Other
9
.7%
117,622
N/S
N/S
113,000
N/S
N/S
Geoscience Consulting
49
3.9%
106,607
49,300
60,000
85,000
113,500
170,000
Environmental

14
1.1% 87,595 47,466 N/S
84,000 N/S
156,500
Geochemistry

3
.2% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Geology
6
.5%
225,833
N/S
N/S
107,500
N/S
N/S
Geophysics
5
.4%
80,140
N/S
N/S
85,000
N/S
N/S
Geotechnics
5
.4%
72,340
N/S
N/S
74,000
N/S
N/S
Hydrogeology
6
.5%
90,667
N/S
N/S
79,000
N/S
N/S
Management

2
.2% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Mineral Exploration
7
.6%
95,571
N/S
N/S
90,000
N/S
N/S
Other

1
.1% N/S N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

Note: Caution should be exercised when small samples are used to calculate median and mean compensation values. Median
values have not been provided for samples of less than five respondents. Additionally, compensation values should be determined and
calculated by the level of responsibility for the position and as such, the prediction of compensation based on any one factor is difficult
due to market forces and general economic conditions, and caution should be exercised.
Exhibit 2 - Reported Base Salary by Industry (continued)

Industry

Total
% of
Lower
Lower
Upper
Upper
Jobs
Total
Mean
Decile
Quartile
Median
Quartile
Decile

Utilities, Communications, Transportation

144 11.6% 97,337 61,350 72,000 90,500
112,750 132,000
Communication and Telecommunication 8 0 70,688 N/S N/S 74,000 N/S N/S
Electric Power and Gas Utilities
104
8.4%
97,492
62,000
74,250
90,500
113,125
127,000
Facilities Management
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Pipelines
3 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Transportation
19 1.5% 100,826 53,000
N/S 94,147
N/S 195,000
Water Supply
5 0 92,951 N/S N/S 97,500 N/S N/S
Other
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Government
143 11.5% 94,132 65,800 77,200 90,000
110,000 126,841
Crown Corporations
8
0
96,313
N/S
N/S
98,500
N/S
N/S
Education
24 1.9% 105,208 67,500
N/S 100,000 N/S 153,500
Federal
11
0 102,291 83,600
N/S 101,000 N/S 125,840
First Nations
1 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Health Care
5
0
86,200
60,000
N/S
80,000
N/S
N/S
Military
6 0 72,867 60,000 N/S 72,100 N/S N/S
Provincial/Territorial
35 2.8% 76,014 56,600 68,000 78,000 85,000 91,600
Regional, Municipal and Local
49
3.9%
102,786
69,936
87,000
100,000
123,000
130,000
Other
3 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Primary and Resource Industries
121
9.7%
109,763
70,112
84,000
100,400
126,242
169,100
Agriculture
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Aquaculture
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Chemical
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Forestry
8
0 100,450 50,000
N/S 103,000 N/S
N/S
Mining
78 6.3% 115,009 72,317 85,750 102,250 135,000 180,000
Oil and Gas
18
1.4%
109,094
65,800
N/S
109,500
N/S
171,950
Pulp & Paper
7
0
104,438
N/S
N/S
104,260
N/S
N/S
Other
5 0 81,400 N/S N/S 72,000 N/S N/S
Construction and Manufacturing
139
11.2%
92,251
55,000
68,000
85,000
106,000
138,200
Concrete & Precast
2
0
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
N/S
Construction
59 4.8% 92,833 55,000 65,800 85,000
105,000 135,000
Design/Building
18 1.4% 101,479 52,700
N/S 99,000
N/S 153,400
Fabrication
1 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Manufacturing, heavy
43
3.5%
84,213
55,270
69,125
85,200
98,200
130,200
Manufacturing, light
15
1.2%
97,229
57,879
N/S
90,000
N/S
137,720
Other
1 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
High Technology
90 7.2% 89,088 55,000 65,775 83,000
106,906 135,175
High Technology/Manufacturing
19 1.5% 83,713 42,000 N/S 80,000 N/S
117,000
Instrumental/Controls
4 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Product Development
28 2.3% 85,896 54,500 60,000 75,750
100,000 151,300
Research & Development
20
1.6%
81,930
48,850
N/S
75,000
N/S
129,000
Software Development
13 1.0% 117,347 66,250
N/S 106,800 N/S 194,000
Systems Integration
4 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Other
3 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Other
37 3.0% 107,140 58,000 74,000 89,000
121,500 160,600
Financial Planning
1 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Management Consulting
1 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Non-Profit Association
2 0 N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S N/S
Service Industry
10
0 129,983 51,500
N/S 100,450 N/S 440,013
Other
23 1.9% 99,885 53,376 N/S 87,300 N/S
161,800
N/S Insufficient Sample Size
2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

WORKING HOURS and OTHER COMPENSATION

Working Hours
The most commonly reported standard work week is 40 hours, indicated by 58.5% of the respondents. A
37.5-hour base week is reported by 34.4% while 7.1% have a base week of 35 hours. The average number of
hours worked weekly is 44 hours.
Other Financial Compensation
The amount of total other financial compensation paid as a percentage of total annual compensation
is presented by responsibility point range in Exhibit 3. In general, other compensation forms a larger
percentage of overall compensation at higher responsibility levels.
Exhibit 3 Other Compensation as a Percentage of Total Annual Compensation 2012


Total
Mean Base

Jobs
Salary

Mean Total
Compensation

Less than 200

61
57,141
200-249 115 59,842
250-299 130 68,012
300-349 165 78,268
350-399 153 89,006
400-449 121 94,731
450-499 114 101,646
500-549 109 109,532
550-599
81 117,258
600-649
57 118,335
650-699
54 143,625
700-749
41 154,721
750-799
33 182,867
800+
8 224,000
Total 1,242 95,732

Total Other
Annual
Compensation

59,787
63,604
74,863
86,842
104,637
107,124
117,380
135,017
135,595
146,927
161,847
207,833
223,790
343,250
111,789

Other Compensation as a
Percentage of Total
Annual Compensation

2,646
3,762
6,851
8,574
15,631
12,393
15,734
25,485
18,337
28,592
18,222
53,112
40,924
119,250
16,057

4.4%
5.9%
9.2%
9.9%
14.9%
11.6%
13.4%
18.9%
13.5%
19.5%
11.3%
25.6%
18.3%
34.7%
14.4%

Exhibit 4 provides the percentages of respondents by industry that receive additional compensation over
base annual compensation. Additional compensation is usually in the form of a performance/merit bonus,
indicated by 32% of respondents, followed by overtime paid to 18.2% of respondents and profit sharing paid
to 11.1% of respondents.
Exhibit 4 - Percentage of Respondents Receiving Other Compensation
Project/
Completion Performance/


Total Jobs
Bonus Commission Overtime Merit Bonus
All Sectors
1,476
Consulting Services 694
Management Consulting 23
Engineering Consulting 613
Geoscience Consulting 59
Utilities, Communications
157
Government 163
Primary and Resource Industries 145
Construction and Manufacturing 168
High Technology 107
Other 42

10.6%
10.4%
4.3%
11.3%
5.1%
12.1%
1.8%
15.2%
13.7%
14.0%
4.8%

Profit
Sharing

Stock
Options

Other

0.34% 18.2% 32.0% 11.1% 6.8% 9.3%

0.14% 22.91% 27.52% 14.12% 5.62% 7.64%
0.00% 0.00% 34.78% 4.35% 0.00% 4.35%
0.16% 23.49% 27.57% 14.03% 5.22% 7.34%
0.00% 25.42% 23.73% 18.64% 11.86% 11.86%
0.64%
18.47%
63.69%
2.55%
5.10%
11.46%
0.00% 16.56% 6.75% 0.00% 0.00% 11.04%
0.00% 17.24% 50.34% 16.55% 17.93% 13.10%
0.60% 10.71% 30.95% 16.67% 4.17% 8.33%
0.93% 6.54% 28.97% 6.54%
17.76% 11.21%
2.38% 9.52% 33.33% 7.14% 2.38% 7.14%

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS AND PERQUISITES

The majority of respondents indicated that their employer pays for, or partially subsidizes, BC basic medical coverage
(77.5%), extended health benefits (90.2%), long-term disability (79%), dental plans (91.3%), vision plans (83.7%)
and life insurance (78.3%). Related education costs are at least partially reimbursed for 71.9% of respondents, 47.2%
participate in an employer-sponsored RRSP plan, 47.7% participate in an employer-sponsored pension plan and
76.3% have their APEGBC Association fees paid for or partly sponsored by their employer.
Exhibit 5 provides a summary of the percentages of respondents receiving various benefits and perquisites.
Exhibit 5 - Employee Benefits and Perquisites
Benefit provided

100%
Partially
Total
Employer Paid Employer Paid Provided

Life Insurance
39.3% 39.0% 78.3%
Provincial Medical Plan
51.4%
26.1%
77.5%
Extended Health Plan
39.4%
50.9%
90.2%
Dental Plan
33.2% 58.1% 91.3%
Vision Plan
29.8% 53.9% 83.7%
Prescription Drug Plan
33.3%
53.0%
86.3%
Long-term Disability
34.0% 45.0% 79.0%
Life/Accident Insurance
34.2% 42.1% 76.3%
Pension Plan
13.3% 34.4% 47.7%
RRSP Plan
9.1% 38.1% 47.2%
Education (related)
43.0% 28.9% 71.9%
Education (unrelated)
2.5%
9.8%
12.3%
APEGBC Membership Fees
69.3%
7.0%
76.3%
Other Professional Membership Fees 41.9%
8.6%
50.5%
Company Paid Parking
35.2%
35.2%
Company Supplied Car
11.4%
11.4%
Car Allowance
17.3%
17.3%
Telecommuting
34.5% 34.5%
Flex-time
66.0% 66.0%
Fitness Facility/Membership
29.1%
29.1%
Employee Share Ownership
25.4%
25.4%
Bonus or Profit Sharing Plan
43.2%
43.2%
Stock Options
17.7%
17.7%
Isolation Allowance
12.5%
12.5%
Parental Leave
25.5%
25.5%

Not
Provided

No Response
Dont Know

14.4%
19.1%
7.0%
6.8%
11.3%
8.7%
12.6%
13.4%
39.8%
40.2%
18.0%
66.7%
20.3%
30.2%
58.9%
82.9%
76.4%
57.6%
29.3%
64.9%
67.8%
50.1%
74.7%
72.0%
46.1%

7.2%
3.4%
2.7%
1.8%
5.0%
5.0%
8.4%
10.3%
12.5%
12.7%
10.1%
21.0%
3.5%
19.2%
5.9%
5.7%
6.2%
7.9%
4.7%
6.0%
6.8%
6.6%
7.6%
15.4%
28.3%

Note: the percentages may not add up to 100 due to rounding

Vacation Entitlements

Exhibit 6 - Vacation Entitlements

The most commonly reported vacation entitlement is three

weeks. 66% of respondents receive between three and four weeks
of vacation annually and 19.2% receive five or more weeks each
year. Exhibit 6 presents the vacation entitlements of respondents.

Vacation Weeks

Count

Percent

2
210 14.2%
3
576 39.0%
4
398 27.0%
5
138 9.3%
6
69 4.7%
7
45 3.0%
8+
32 2.2%
No Response
8
.5%
Total
1,476 100.0%

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

SECTION B - SURVEY DEMOGRAPHICS AND OTHER COMPENSATION TABLES

EMPLOYMENT STATUS
Exhibit 7 illustrates the employment status of this years respondents as of June 2012. As the survey launch
notice invited participation from members with practising status only, responses do not reflect the actual
distribution of full-time, part-time, students and unemployed members in the APEGBC membership and
are provided for informational purposes related to this survey only. Full-time salaried/ contract workers
account for 88.8% of respondents, while 1.6% indicated that they are employed part time. Owners/
partners comprise 3.9% of the sample, while 2.2% of respondents are self-employed. Students, retired
or unemployed members, and members who did not indicate their employment status make up the
remainder at 3.6% of the respondents.
Exhibit 7 - Employment Status of Respondents June 2012
Gender
Row
Employment Status
Male Female Not Given
Total
Percent
Full-time Salaried
1,357 247 416 2020 83.4%
Full-time Contract 77 15 38 130 5.4%
Part-time Salaried
9
11
4
24
1.0%
Part-time Contract
8 1 5 14
0.6%
Owner
49 3 20 72 3.0%
Partner
16 1 5 22
0.9%
Self-employed 32 4 18 54 2.2%
Student
0 0 48 48 2.0%
Retired
0 0 15 15 0.6%
Unemployed
0 0 22 22 0.9%
Not Reported
3
3
0.1%
Total
1,548 282 594 2,424
100.0%
Column Percent 63.9% 11.6% 24.4% 100.0%

REPORTED BASE SALARY AND TOTAL ANNUAL COMPENSATION

BY RESPONSIBILITY LEVEL AND GENDER
Exhibit 8 presents mean and median base salary and total annual compensation for male and female
respondents by responsibility point level. Median total annual compensation is higher for women at the
responsibility point levels less than 250, 300-349 and 350-399 when compared to the male respondents.
Median base salary values are also higher for women in the point ranges less than 200, 200-249, and 350-399.
Exhibit 8 - Reported Base Salary & Total Annual Compensation by Responsibility Level and Gender
Male Respondents

Female Respondents

Median Mean Median Mean

Total
Median
Total Annual
Total Annual
Total
Median
Total Annual
Total Annual

Jobs
Base Salary Compensation Compensation
Jobs Base Salary
Compensation Compensation
Less than 200
49
56,500
200 - 249
93
57,000
250 - 299
105
66,560
300 - 349
136
75,000
350 - 399
125
85,000
400 - 449
100
92,210
450 - 499
99
101,500
500 - 549
91
106,500
550 - 599
73
114,000
600 - 649
53
120,000
650 - 699
47
138,673
700 - 749
38
140,000
750 - 799
30
165,000
800+
8 187,500
N/S - Insufficient Sample Size
10

58,000
57,600
72,000
82,000
91,000
102,500
109,250
120,000
128,000
136,000
156,000
174,000
191,500
260,000

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

59,250
12
59,750
63,119
21
63,000
74,270
22
60,000
86,809
25
73,000
99,135
24
89,125
109,630
20
91,750
118,897
12
86,063
137,524
13
97,500
136,914
6
108,000
147,681
3
N/S
161,976
6
119,000
208,767
1
N/S
234,136
3
N/S
343,250 0
N/S

61,750
65,916
66,575
82,500
94,883
100,750
99,000
109,000
113,616
N/S
136,922
N/S
N/S
N/S

61,979
66,026
76,355
84,614
132,938
95,452
102,705
117,629
117,412
N/S
162,807
N/S
N/S
N/S

REPORTED BASE SALARY BY BACHELORS DEGREE

Exhibit 9 presents reported base salary by bachelors degree received. The median base salary for all disciplines is
$87,500 and the median responsibility point level was 398 points. Mineral exploration graduates reported the highest
median base salary of $117,900 and the highest responsibility level with a median point level of 592.

Note: Caution should be exercised when small samples are used to calculate median and mean compensation values. Median
values have not been provided for samples of less than five respondents. Additionally, compensation values should be determined and
calculated by the level of responsibility for the position and as such, the prediction of compensation based on any one factor is difficult
due to market forces and general economic conditions, and caution should be exercised.
Exhibit 9 - Reported Base Salary by Bachelors Degree

Number of
% of Total Base Salary
Responses
Mean Median

Median
Points

Geoscience
100 8.1% 112,765 91,000
Environmental
12
1.0%
76,886
68,250
Geochemistry
1
0.1%
N/S
N/S
Geology
58
4.7%
123,704
94,250
Geophysics
4
0.3%
N/S
N/S
Geotechnics
8
0.6%
97,588
92,250
Hydrogeology
4
0.3%
72,349
63,600
Hydrology
1
0.1%
N/S
N/S
Management
1
0.1%
N/S
N/S
Mineral Exploration
8
0.6%
121,850
117,900
Other
3
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Engineering
1,139 91.7% 94,258 87,000
Aeronautics/Aerospace
18
1.4%
91,235
80,750
Agriculture
3
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Bioresource
7
0.6%
97,004
95,700
Biosystems
1
0.1%
N/S
N/S
Building Science
2
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Chemical
64
5.2%
105,665
102,000
Civil
274
22.1%
95,729
85,000
Computer
10
0.8%
88,680
90,500
Construction
5
0.4%
109,000
110,000
Electrical/Electronic
165
13.3%
91,019
82,000
Engineering Physics
27
2.2%
92,979
92,000
Environmental
27
2.2%
81,578
82,000
Fire Protection
2
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Food/Beverage
1
0.1%
N/S
N/S
Forest
10
0.8%
86,063
81,500
Geological
28
2.3%
89,823
77,750
Geotechnical
20
1.6%
87,823
83,300
Industrial/Manufacturing
8
0.6%
95,063
93,000
Marine/Naval
6
0.5%
84,692
84,500
Materials Handling
2
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Mechanical
294
23.7%
90,375
84,120
Metallurgical/Materials
24
1.9%
114,651
94,365
Mining
27
2.2%
120,590
98,000
Petroleum (Energy)
3
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Power (Energy)
10
0.8%
92,690
101,200
Structural
53
4.3%
100,738
88,118
Surveying/Geomatics
4
0.3%
N/S
N/S
Transportation
15
1.2%
96,109
83,400
Water Resources
8
0.6%
83,533
85,400
Other
21 1.7% 76,850 80,000
Not Reported
3
0.2%
N/S
N/S
Total
1,242 100.0%
95,732 87,500
N/S - Insufficient Sample Size

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

467
323
N/S
472
N/S
542
N/S
N/S
N/S
592
N/S
391
368
N/S
398
N/S
N/S
457
389
403
380
381
360
360
N/S
N/S
423
339
375
453
417
N/S
377
389
408
N/S
410
448
N/S
438
327
273
N/S
398

11

REPORTED BASE SALARY BY GRADUATE DEGREE RECEIVED

Respondents who have reported obtaining postgraduate degrees represent just 35.7% of the 1,242 valid BC
respondents. Exhibit 10 illustrates the effect of higher education on compensation.

Exhibit 10 - Reported Base Salary by Graduate Degree Received

Number

MASc/MEng
188
MSc
128
MBA
60
Other Masters Degree 15
PhD/DSc
52

12

Median
Points

Base Salary
Mean
Median

440 102,835
478 102,621
546 131,832
533
95,625
526 112,113

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

98,500
93,280
116,500
94,000
105,000

REPORTED BASE SALARY AND RESPONSIBILITY LEVEL BY YEAR OF GRADUATION

The reported median base salary results by year of graduation are presented for the survey respondents in Exhibit 11.
The largest increase in responsibility level was reported by respondents who received their degree in 1977 with an
increase of 42.86% from 2010 to 2012.

Note: Caution should be exercised when examining individual years where small samples are used to calculate median and mean
compensation values. Median values have not been provided for samples of less than five respondents. Additionally, compensation
values should be determined and calculated by the level of responsibility for the position and as such, the prediction of compensation
based on any one factor is difficult due to market forces and general economic conditions; and caution should be exercised.
Exhibit 11 - Reported Base Salary and Responsibility Level by Year of Graduation

Total Jobs
Median Points


%
2012 Median

2012 2010 2012 2010 Change
Base Salary
2012 or Later
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
1983
1982
1981
1980
1979
1978
1977
1976
1975 and Earlier
Not Reported
N/A - Not Available

16
N/A
197
N/A
N/A
42 N/A 205 N/A
N/A
74 17 232 213 8.92%
56 95 257 210 22.38%
56 140 277 223 23.99%
68 166 312 265 17.74%
44 141 316 265 19.06%
52 156 350 307 13.84%
38 139 339 316 7.28%
49 147 349 330 5.76%
36 119 364 346 5.20%
29 113 398 376 5.85%
33 95 416 388 7.22%
28 82 439 415 5.78%
35 79 468 429 9.09%
18 90 405 460 -11.96%
31 79 500 441 13.38%
36 57 472 435 8.51%
36 86 474 465 1.94%
21 86 440 467 -5.78%
28 105 488 458 6.55%
26 77 533 515 3.50%
24 79 501 493 1.62%
22 71 516 498 3.51%
21 78 578 488 18.44%
29 75 513 578 -11.25%
17 83 508 548 -7.30%
21 69 509 526 -3.23%
28 81 526 515 2.04%
24 62 603 554 8.75%
18 75 511 521 -2.02%
13 62 543 588 -7.65%
16 69 601 549 9.38%
13 45 608 562 8.19%
20 34 476 566 -15.90%
9 43 525 573 -8.38%
16 44 609 558 9.14%
65
205
596
579
2.94%
34 105 490 400 22.38%

55,500
57,800
57,598
60,000
62,755
70,000
72,563
80,000
77,850
80,000
89,000
89,000
90,000
90,000
96,000
104,500
100,000
95,450
98,750
102,500
113,250
116,500
112,500
120,000
115,000
107,000
100,000
113,000
111,500
139,000
114,565
104,000
115,919
120,000
113,065
150,000
123,563
125,000
91,400

2010 Median
Base Salary
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
62,450
54,000
55,000
58,800
60,000
64,500
70,000
74,000
78,300
77,000
79,310
87,500
90,500
86,500
89,780
92,500
87,500
98,793
97,000
95,500
97,750
108,000
100,000
100,000
104,000
103,000
99,000
103,000
115,000
97,014
105,200
105,000
108,058
115,000
92,261

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

2012/2010 Change
in Median Base
Salary
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.49%
29.63%
31.93%
36.05%
29.75%
24.03%
27.14%
20.27%
14.94%
16.88%
21.04%
19.43%
10.50%
10.35%
9.99%
10.81%
29.43%
17.92%
15.98%
25.65%
17.65%
-0.93%
0.00%
13.00%
7.21%
34.95%
15.72%
0.97%
0.80%
23.69%
7.48%
42.86%
14.35%
8.70%
-0.93%

13

COMPENSATION BY SIZE OF ORGANIZATION

Median base salary and total annual compensation by size of organization is presented in Exhibit 12.
Members in organizations of 251- 500 employees reported the highest median base salary and total annual
compensation of $92,800 and $103,000 respectively.
Exhibit 12 - Compensation by Size of Organization




Median
2012 Median

Count
Points
Base Salary
1 - 10
11 - 20
21 - 50
51 - 100
101 - 250
251 - 500
Over 500
Not Reported

84
69
118
89
131
126
618
7

478
370
360
348
396
407
410
455

2012
Median Total
Compensation

84,500
78,000
80,000
72,000
85,000
92,800
91,500
85,000

97,990
87,000
88,000
77,728
90,242
103,000
101,807
89,654

REPORTED BASE SALARY BY MEMBER STATUS AND GENDER

Exhibit 13 presents reported base salary by member status and gender. Analysis suggests that obtaining
professional engineer and professional geoscientist status pays. The change in median responsibility
level from EIT to P.Eng. increases 85.3% which also correlates to an increase in median base salary of
61.3%. For GIT to P.Geo., the change in median responsibility level increases 65.3% with a median base
salary increase of 64.6%.
Exhibit 13 - Reported Base Salary by Member Status and Gender

Employment
Status

Median
Count Points

2012
2012
Median
Median
Base
Total
Salary Compensation

Count

Median
Points

Female
Median
Median
Base
Total
Salary Compensation

Count

Median
Points

Male
Median
Median
Base
Total
Salary Compensation

P.Eng.
788 465 100,000 110,000 85 411 89,250 100,000 682 471 100,000 110,000
P.Geo.
78 496 98,750 107,000 17 438 90,000 95,000 61 505 109,248 117,500
P.Eng./P.Geo.
8 438 103,000 113,063 2 N/S
N/S
N/S
6 420 103,000 107,000
Limited Licence 9 546 90,300 120,000 0 N/S
N/S
N/S
9 546 90,300 120,000
Provisional Member
2
N/S N/S N/S 0
N/S N/S N/S 2
N/S N/S N/S
EIT
335 251 62,000 65,150 55 245 63,000 65,916 274 253 62,000 65,000
GIT
20 300 60,000 64,263 8 283 58,850 64,263 12 306 60,000 68,666
Not Reported 2
N/S N/S N/S 1
N/S N/S N/S 1
N/S N/S N/S
N/A - Not Available, N/S - Insufficient Sample Size

14

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

COMPENSATION BY REGION AND GENDER INCLUDING NON-BC

RESPONDENTS
The 2012 compensation survey received responses from 248 APEGBC members outside of British
Columbia. While the intent of the survey and this report is to provide information to assist members and
BC employers in setting BC compensation levels, and all previous compensation analyses use the valid
sample of 1,476 BC respondents only. Exhibit 14 reports base salary and total annual compensation by
region and gender for the larger worldwide sample of 1,734 valid respondents.

Exhibit 14 - Compensation by Region and Gender Including Non-BC Respondents

2012
Median 2012 Median Median Total
Branch/Region
Count
Points Base Salary Compensation
Count
Vancouver Island
76
Victoria
88
Lower Mainland
1,077
Okanagan
75
West Kootenay
35
East Kootenay
20
South Central
34
Central Interior
38
Peace River
21
Northern
12
Elsewhere in Canada 185
Outside of Canada
63
Not Reported
10
Total
1,734
N/A - Not Available

423
82,500
86,000
407 83,000 85,928
380
85,000
90,500
395 84,000 89,102
400
83,000
94,700
333
86,950
105,500
383
87,500
96,500
348
80,800
94,500
323
84,000
101,914
413 75,280 70,280
555
124,000
136,000
590
120,000
132,000
407
89,500
95,000
405 90,000 95,000

Male
Median
Points

8
418
17 468
164
315
6 278
9
356
6
318
7
300
8
318
3
235
N/A N/A
20
443
1
N/S
N/A
N/A
249 346

2012 Median
Base Salary
Count

Female
Median
Points

2012 Median
Base Salary

95,774
68
423
81,000
78,000 69 381 83,000
72,750
891
393
87,000
61,500 67 428 88,000
81,000
25
403
85,000
79,000
13
333
93,000
72,100
27
438
93,000
74,500
29
383
85,000
N/S
18
352
87,000
N/A 12 413 75,280
116,383
163
566
124,000
N/S
62
588
120,000
N/A
1
N/S
N/S
76,000 1,445 423
91,520

2012 APEGBC Report On Members Compensation And Benefits

15

2012

Report On Members
Compensation And Benefits

Association of Professional Engineers

and Geoscientists of BC
Suite 200 - 4010 Regent Street
Burnaby, BC V5C 6N2
Tel: 604-430-8035
Fax: 604-430-8085
Toll Free: 1-888-430-8035
www.apeg.bc.ca