Compensation in the Halifax tech community 2020
The annual Halihax member survey asks members to report on their compensation, skills and how they are feeling in the community. We use this data to produce the compensation in the Halifax tech community report.This report is a review of our 2020 member survey data, where we take a look at both the current state and emerging trends we are seeing in the community.
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1176 (↑ 522)
Community Members
180 (↑ 60)
2020 survey respondents
Diversity & inclusion
This year we took a closer look at who our members are, and how we can represent them better.
9.5 % **
Identify as a visible minority
1.7 % **
Identify as indigenous
4.4 % **
Identify as someone with a disability
Gender Identity
We asked respondents to choose the option they identify with in regards to gender.Feeling of belonging
We asked respondents to rank how well they felt they belong in the Halihax community.We received a lot of great feedback from the write-in portion of our diversity & inclusion section of the survey. Much of the feedback was positive; however, we also received key insights to how we can create a more welcoming space, which we will share in a future blog post of our plan for 2021.
Job market
Our #jobs channel is used by employers and job seekers to showcase talent and opportunities that are available.5.6 % (↓ 4.4)
Are actively seeking a new position
8.8 % **
Are seeking a new role within the next 6-12 months
22.8 % **
Posted a job listing to our #jobs channel last year
11 % **
Job posters attribute hiring their candidate through Halihax
13.6 % **
Respondents say were hired as a result of a job they found through Halihax
Salary & compensation insights
In this section we take a look at salary in comparison to other reported qualifications.35.6 % (↓ 0.2)
Were awarded options as part of compensation
23.9 % (↑ 3.1)
Hold equity in the company that employs them
80 % (↓ 3.3)
Believe they receive fair compensation
63.3 % ( - )
Report receiving a raise in the last year
8.32 % ( - )
Median raise percentage
87 % (↑ 3.7)
Receive health benefits
93.3 % (↓ 3.3)
Paid in CAD
Employment parameters
There are a number of factors that play into what a person is compensated. Stage, size, and location of company are key factors in determining what your potential salary could be.2 (↑ 0.5)
Years in current role
9 (↓ 4)
Years of industry experience
Quality of life
We often look at salary above all when it comes to employment, but it's important to rationalize it against other quality of life metrics.Weekly work hours, median, of 40 (no change from 2019)
Remote vs co-located
The nature of working in a technology field is that you're able to work from almost anywhere that you can be connected to the internet. Often employers will pay based on a centralized pay scale.46.7% of respondents work remotely (↑ 43.7%)
Programming & technologies
77.2% of respondents touch code daily, let's take a look at what languages and technologies they're using.COVID-19 Pandemic
2020 has been a rather unique year for everyone with the COVID-19 pandemic impacting many businesses. Halihax had to move to completely virtual events, immediately after having rebooted our in-person speaker series. Here we take a look at compensation and working arrangements impact due to the pandemic.Benefits and compensation
Some employers have adjusted benefits or compensation due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.A vast majority of respondents say their compensation has not been directly impacted.
Working arrangements
Large shifts have occurred both temporary and permanent to how people are working together.Through the years
Since 2018 we've ran this yearly member survey in hopes of one day showing trends in the community. While we still only have a limited history, we can now take a look at the last few years of data to compare.Check out results from previous years:
A comparison of median salary by programming language from 2018-2020
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Have you found something useful from our report? Tell your friends and colleagues about it.Thank you!
We would like to thank all of the respondents to our 2020 survey, without you we would not be able to produce this resource for the community. If you know someone who may benefit from this data, please consider sharing it with them.
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