The 30 jobs earning surprise spots in the $100k club

Pay rises overtook import prices and supply shocks to form the lion’s share of headline inflation in the June quarter last year, according to Treasury analysis obtained by The Australian Financial Review under freedom of information, a trend economists expect continued to the end of 2023 and into 2024.

Does $100,000 mean you’re rich? Probably not

Recruiter Nicole Gorton, a director at Robert Half, which specialises in administration, technology and accounting roles, said $100,000 a year was a good salary in the roles she recruited for, but the post-pandemic surge in inflation had significantly eroded its value.

“Generally speaking, 100k is nowhere near what it was 12 to 24 months ago,” Ms Gorton said. “It doesn’t go as far as it did. So, would you call someone on $100,000 rich? Probably not. But it depends on where you live and how you choose to spend money in your life.”

Ms Gorton said job candidates in finance and accounting typically needed to have a bachelor’s degree, be on the path towards getting an industry qualification, and have at least two years’ experience under their belts to land a six-figure salary.

But she said employers would also pay a premium for candidates who were highly skilled in communication, innovation, problem-solving and leadership.

As for technology roles, Ms Gorton said help-desk support managers could expect to earn a six-figure salary when they reached a mid-level position. But in high-demand areas such as cybersecurity, project management and software engineering and development, strong candidates could fetch $100,000 a year in an entry-level role, she said.

“It could actually be their first role – it’s either their first or their second,” Ms Gorton said, before adding that only particularly strong candidates in these disciplines could fetch $100,000 a year in their first role.

‘Your home is your truck’

National Road Freighters Association board member and former owner-driver Gordon Mackinlay said most road train drivers would earn much more than $100,000 a year.

But they worked extremely long hours and typically had to be away from home for days at a time, he said.

“I certainly can’t imagine they would be earning any less than $120,000 a year,” Mr Mackinlay said.

He told AFR Weekend that life on the road held a certain appeal but was not particularly family-friendly.

“From Sunday night to Friday afternoon, your home is your truck,” Mr Mackinlay said.

Even when a driver took an ostensibly fast, short-distance job, they often ended up being away for days as their boss would ask them to pick up more jobs when on the road.

It’s why Mr Mackinlay said some of the best advice he ever received was: “Never go anywhere without a week’s [worth of] clothes.”