Genomics salaries for professionals working in the USA are twice as much as colleagues working in the UK. This was one of the most striking findings from the Genomics Industry Workforce survey report published this week by Front Line Genomics and Paramount Recruitment

The median salary for genomics industry workers within the USA is $109,500 (£81,111) while the median salary in the UK is just £38,018.  The gap between the USA and UK professionals was particularly obvious at the higher end of the salary range. 10% of Genomics professionals in the USA have a base salary in excess of £150,000 ($200,000) while only 1% of the UK workers earn over this amount.

FRONTLINE GENOMICS SALARY SURVEY

The Workforce insights survey compiled responses from 1,235 professionals currently working in the Genomics industry in 48 countries worldwide.   The results showed that the highest median average salary is received by genomics professionals in Switzerland followed by the USA (at £81,667 and £81,111 respectively).  We then see a significant drop of over £30k between these and the next group of countries with Germany third at £48,677, the Netherlands at £42,593 and the UK at £38,018.

France and Belgium have a median base salary of £35,802 with Italy at £36,667 and Spain at £25,926.   India had the lowest median salary in our survey of £12,794.

Paramount Recruitment Director Eugene McDaid said

“There has been an awareness in the industry that US salaries are higher than those in the UK – but the figures in this survey really throw a spotlight on the huge pay gap.   With the type of work undertaken similar in both countries, UK scientists could be tempted to look at the feasibility of relocating to the USA – and this is of concern to UK based genomics businesses.”

The full report of the survey provides some fascinating details including the gender pay gap in the UK and USA, average salaries earned within each function/role and the average pay rise anticipated this year.