LANGUAGE PAYS: How English can boost your salary An Executive Briefing Paper by EF Corporate Solutions
Copyright Š 2016 EF Education First. All rights reserved.
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LANGUAGE PAYS: How English can boost your salary The salary connection
4
Where does English make a difference?
6
Country profiles
8
Conclusion and recommendations
24
Survey methodology
26
salary connection The
Few people would doubt the value of learning a language as a way of enriching your life. The way linguistic ability opens doors to new cultures and experiences is readily understood in today’s highly globalized society.
This is particularly the case with English. For non-English speakers, gaining proficiency in this one language can have a profound impact. It allows you to communicate with 2 billion people worldwide, almost a third of the world’s population. It also gives you unrivalled access to knowledge: more than 50% of the world’s technical and scientific
1. EF: Why English? Available at http://www.ef.com/corporate/interactivepres/#slide-1 2. Ibid.
periodicals are in English, as is more than 80% of the information stored online1. Little wonder, then, that 90% of foreign language speakers believe a good grasp of English would be useful to them in future. Or that 81% of emerging economies state they need to use English every day2.
5
18% improvement in expected salary,
across all geographies, sectors, levels of experience and degrees of linguistic improvement. The level of salary improvement ranges from zero, in the three cases mentioned above, to 59% in two cases.
The reason for this is perhaps that language acquisition is traditionally viewed as personally enriching but not directly related to earning • The biggest salary hikes would potential. The research unveiled in be expected among seasoned this paper shows that view is incorrect. professionals who go from having no English to an advanced command of An extensive survey of salary the language. The minimum increase expectations for employees with eight in salary found among workers with years’ or more experience across eight eight or more year’s experience, major global markets (Brazil, China, progressing from no English to France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico advanced level, was 30%. and Middle East) and six major industries reveals a highly positive Previous EF research has shown how correlation between English skills English language skills can strengthen and pay. innovation, global team working and competitiveness, among other benefits. Key findings include: This study confirms that in addition
• There is a very strong connection
to these company-related factors,
between better English and better
there could potentially be strong
pay. We only found three out of 1,120 cases where English acquisition made no difference to salary expectations. And these were all in areas where workers had no industry experience and were just progressing from zero to beginner in language skill.
personal reasons to improve English.
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• Improving English yields an average
There is a very strong connection between better English and better pay.
With all that, however, learning English is still often seen as a recreational activity, something to be done in spare time or at an unspecified future date.
Where
does English make a difference? Germany, Mexico and the Middle East are the regions that place the greatest importance on speaking English, while China, France and Japan fall slightly below the global average.
But the difference is small, and even in China - which scores the lowest – the value of English is still clear with a score of 3.7. Overall, the importance of English in the workforce is high, with an average of 4 on a scale of 5 (see right). English skills have the greatest effect on employability in the Middle East, and slightly less impact in China and Japan.
3. World Bank, Exports of goods and services (% of GDP): http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.EXP.GNFS.ZS
The reason for this is unclear, although one factor might be the importance of exports for Middle Eastern countries. World Bank data, for example, shows that exports accounted for 52% of Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product in 2013, compared to 23% in China and 16% in Japan 3.
7
4.9 4.8
The importance of speaking English
4.7
5 = Very important; 4 = Somewhat important; 3 = Neutral; 2 = Somewhat unimportant; 1 = Not important at all
4.6
4.5 4.4
SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT
4.3
.............................................................................. Mexico 4.25
4.2 4.1
4.0
GLOBAL AVERAGE 4.04 Brazil 3.99 ................................................................................. .................................................................................... Italy 3.98
3.9 3.8 3.7 3.6
3.5 3.4 3.3 3.2
NEUTRAL
.......................................................................... Germany 4.36 ..................................................................... Middle East 4.34
3.1
3.0 2.9 2.8 2.7 2.6
2.5
...............................................................................France 3.82 ................................................................................ Japan 3.76 ................................................................................. China 3.73
The importance of English does not vary hugely between countries.
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VERY IMPORTANT
5.0
Brazil
Consulting, IT, banking, and travel and tourism are the sectors in Brazil where English is most highly valued, perhaps reflecting a greater international focus than
Brazilian professionals with eight or more year’s experience could gain an average salary increase of 32.5% by going from beginner’s to advanced English. The highest level at around 35%, is in the consulting and technology sectors.
in industries such as retail or manufacturing, which serve the internal market.
Manufacturing is the industry with the lowest level of reward for English ability, at an average of 29% going from beginner to advanced. On the other hand, consulting, technology and IT, and banking and finance all offer average salary increases of 30.532.5% for experienced professionals. With analysts expecting Brazil’s economy to shrink, demand for English language skills might be expected to increase in line with a growing focus on export capabilities.
9 | Brazil
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
60%
37%
55%
36%
50%
None → Advanced
45%
42.4%
40%
Beginner → Advanced
32.5%
35% 30%
None → Intermediate
25%
23.1%
20%
Beginner → Intermediate
None → Beginner
15%
Intermediate → Advanced
19.3%
Consulting
35.5% 35%
Technology & IT
35.0% 34%
33%
Average 32.5%
32%
Banking & Finance
32.5% Travel & Tourism
32.2%
31% Retail
13.3%
30.5% 30%
9.9% 10%
Manufacturing
29%
5% 0%
29.3%
28% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
China
Chinese workers with eight-plus years of experience could expect a 13% hike in salary by improving from beginner’s to intermediate English and over 32% by going one level further to advanced.
Retail and banking are the sectors where English is least valued overall, although even here an experienced professional can command almost a 30% salary boost by progressing from beginner to an advanced level of English skills. A large 37.5% hike could be achieved in consulting and in travel/ tourism and technology and IT it’s still a very sizable 33%. Chinese professionals working in these sectors would do well to invest in their language skills. Increasing awareness of the value of English is being reflected in the growth of China’s English language training market, which is expected to expand by 18.8% between 2014 and 2019, according to analyst firm Research and Markets4.
4. http://www.laprensasa.com/309_america-in-english/3485800_analysts-see-brazil-s-economy-contracting-3-19-pct.html
11 | China
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
60%
39%
55%
38%
50%
37% None → Advanced
45%
40.5%
40%
Beginner → Advanced
35%
32.3%
30% None → Intermediate
25%
21.4%
20%
Beginner → Intermediate
15%
None → Beginner
10%
8.1%
19.1%
13.3%
37.5%
36% 35% 34%
Travel & Tourism
33.3% 33%
Intermediate → Advanced
Consulting
Average 32.3%
32%
Technology & IT
33.0% Manufacturing
32.5%
31% 30% Retail
29%
29.0% Banking & Finance
5%
28%
0%
27% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
28.6%
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
France
The French could gain an average 30% increase in pay through an English language improvement to advanced level (from beginner) across all
The export potential of France’s industrial sector perhaps explains why the highest potential salary jump, of over 33%, is up for grabs for experienced workers within the manufacturing industry who go from beginner’s English to an advanced level.
industries. Even just reaching intermediate English would net an average extra 13%.
Surprisingly, it’s in the consulting industry that professionals with eight-plus years of experience could expect the lowest salary gains when they improve their English, with an average of 18% across all proficiency levels and just under 26% for beginner to advanced. This is of course still a considerable increase.
13 | France
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
60%
35%
55%
34%
50%
33%
Manufacturing
33.3% None → Advanced
45%
40.7%
Travel & Tourism
33.3%
32%
Retail
31.7%
40% Beginner → Advanced
35%
30.4%
30%
None → Intermediate
25%
23.6%
20% None → Beginner
15%
Beginner → Intermediate
31%
Average 30.4%
30%
Banking & Finance
30.0%
29% Intermediate → Advanced
17.2%
28%
Technology & IT
28.1%
27%
13.2%
10.3%
26%
10%
Consulting
25.8%
5%
25%
0%
24% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
Germany
What is notable about Germany is the high demand for English, which at 4.4 out of 5 is the highest in the survey, suggesting a good appetite for professionals with fluent English. For experienced professionals going from beginner’s to advanced level, salary increases range from 23%
The rewards vary widely depending on sector and skills improvement. Thus someone going from no experience to beginner level in travel and tourism will only make 8% more in salary, perhaps because this improvement has little impact in practical terms on a job that often requires language skills. So it makes sense to push on with language training to intermediate proficiency levels where the salary increase rises to 18%.
in travel and tourism to 36% in banking and finance.
In contrast, going from no English to advanced level can earn you an astonishing 52% salary increase in retail or banking and finance, with Manufacturing close behind at 51%. If starting at beginner’s level the expected salary hike is still well over a third [see graph]. So German professionals with little or no English skills could earn a life-changing amount by improving their proficiency to an advanced level.
15 | Germany
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED
60%
37% 36%
Banking & Finance
None → Advanced
35%
Manufacturing
45.3%
34%
Retail
55% 50% 45%
35.8% 34.4% 34.2%
33%
40% 35%
None → Intermediate
Beginner → Advanced
31.4%
Average 31.4%
31% 30%
28.4%
30%
32%
29% 25% None → Beginner
20%
13.9%
15%
Beginner → Intermediate
Intermediate → Advanced
16.9%
14.5%
Consulting
31.3% Technology & IT
29.3%
28% 27% 26% 25%
10%
24%
5%
23%
0%
Travel & Tourism
23.3%
22% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
Italy
English skills are well valued in Italy. Salary increase expectations for professionals with eight or more years of experience average 14% across all industries for improving their English to intermediate level from beginner, and 32% for going to advanced.
Our data shows that for experienced workers, travel and tourism offers the greatest rewards overall, with an average 38% potential salary hike for learning advanced English compared to a 26% average in banking and finance or 29% in manufacturing. The reason for this could well be that Italy’s banking and manufacturing sectors serve a large domestic market whereas the tourism sector is more internationally focused.
17 | Italy
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS 60%
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED 39% 38%
55%
Travel & Tourism
37.5%
37%
50%
None → Advanced
43.3%
45% 40%
36% 35%
Retail
34.3%
34% Beginner → Advanced
35% None → Intermediate
30%
31.7%
25.6%
25% 20%
None → Beginner
15%
Beginner → Intermediate
Consulting
33.8%
33% 32%
Average 31.7%
31% Intermediate → Advanced
30%
17.7%
29%
14.0%
28%
11.6%
Technology & IT
30.0% Manufacturing
28.6%
27%
10%
26%
5%
Banking & Finance
25.9%
25%
0%
24% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
Japan
English has only been taught in Japanese primary schools since 2011, and there is little emphasis on English as a tool for international communication. With one of the lowest ‘importance of speaking English’ scores at 3.8, it seems that the value of English has yet to sink in.
At an average of 28% across all industries, Japan is the country with the lowest salary impact from English among those surveyed. Nevertheless, there is still an expectation that workers in travel and tourism could earn up to 35% more going from beginner to an advanced level of English. In retail the increase is valued at around 25%, which is still sizeable. These levels could be set to increase amid growing awareness of the value of English. In December 2015, for example, Japan’s education ministry announced plans to introduce nationwide English exams for junior high schools students. Further details are expected in 2017, with a possible rollout in 2019.
19 | Japan
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED LEVEL
60%
36%
55%
35%
50%
34%
45%
33% None → Advanced
40%
35.4%
Travel & Tourism
35.0%
32%
35%
31%
30%
30% Banking & Finance
25%
None → Intermediate
18.5%
20% 15%
None → Beginner
10%
7.1%
Beginner → Intermediate
Beginner → Advanced
28.3%
Average 28.3%
28% Intermediate → Advanced
27%
16.8%
26%
29.4% Consulting
28.1% Technology & IT
26.3% Manufacturing
26.0%
11.5%
5%
29%
25%
0%
Retail
25.0%
24% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
Mexico
Despite Mexico’s strong economic and social ties with the United States, English proficiency among adults remains low5. The government is working to boost proficiency through schemes such as Proyecta 100,000, which aims to get Mexican students studying in the US. And there are good reasons why others might want to brush up on their English skills, for example through immersion courses taught in the US. From our survey, Mexico and the Middle East are the places where professionals could achieve the greatest salary increase by studying English.
5. EF EPI Report 2015: www.ef.com/epi
For experienced consulting, manufacturing, banking and finance workers, as much as a 43% salary boost is possible in Mexico, when they improve from beginner to advanced proficiency. Travel & tourism is close behind with a 41% increase possible. Even progressing from beginner to intermediate level can bring significant financial benefits for workers in Mexico, where they could earn at least 16% more in retail or technology and IT, and 19% more in consulting, manufacturing or banking and finance.
21 | Mexico
Salary increase from improved English skills AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS None → Advanced
60%
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED 45%
55.3%
55%
44%
50%
43%
Consulting
43.2% Beginner → Advanced
45%
40.7%
40%
None → Intermediate
Banking & Finance
43.0% Manufacturing
42% 41%
42.5% Average 40.7%
35%
Travel & Tourism
40.8%
32.6% 40%
30%
Intermediate → Advanced
25% None → Beginner
20%
Beginner → Intermediate
22.7%
39%
Technology & IT
38.8%
38%
18.0%
14.7%
37%
15%
36%
10%
Retail
35.7%
5%
35%
0%
34% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
Middle East
The Middle East and North Africa
prized in the region.
The value of English is quite uniformly spread across sectors. Workers can expect to earn around 44% more in manufacturing and retail by going from beginner’s to advanced proficiency if they have eight years or more work experience, and at least 38% more in all other industries surveyed.
Experienced professionals who go from beginner’s to advanced English can expect to earn, on average, 42% more, the highest increase in the study.
Among experienced professionals going from beginner to intermediate proficiency levels, rewards start at 16% in consulting and rise as high as 21% in retail.
have the lowest levels of English proficiency in the world6. One result of this appears to be that English skills are increasingly
Investment in English language training is almost certain to pay off in this region.
6. EF EPI Report 2015: www.ef.com/epi
23
AVERAGE INCREASE ACROSS ALL INDUSTRIES & PROFICIENCY LEVELS None → Advanced
60%
56.5%
55%
INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC INCREASE, BEGINNER TO ADVANCED 46%
45%
50%
Beginner → Advanced
45%
42.2%
40%
Retail Manufacturing
43.8% 43%
None → Intermediate
Average 42.2%
33.5%
35%
44.4%
44%
42%
30% Beginner → Intermediate
25% None → Beginner
20%
Intermediate → Advanced
23.0%
19.2%
Travel & Tourism
42.5%
Technology & IT
42.2% Banking & Finance
41.7% 41%
40%
14.3% 15%
39%
Consulting
38.8%
10% 38%
5% 0%
37% None
Beginner
Inter mediate
ENGLISH SKILLS
Advanced
Beginner
Advanced
ENGLISH SKILLS
| Middle East
Salary increase from improved English skills
Conclusion and recommendations
What comes through loud and clear from this research is that learning English can make you a more valuable employee and is likely to give your salary a considerable hike. Employers will pay more for your language skills.
This finding has perhaps never before been so obviously demonstrated through empirical data. In addition, it is clear that salary expectations improve with proficiency, regardless of location and sector. Improving their English may pose a challenge for professionals due to the lack of time to fit studies in. Those who want to achieve their full earning potential should make time, however. One way to do this is through immersion learning,
where the learner is able to progress one or more grades above their current skill level within a matter of weeks. As revealed in this report, even small proficiency improvements can yield a salary increase in double digits. For employees that make a concerted effort to learn English, and are able to progress from nothing to advanced level, the potential salary benefits are frequently in excess of 50%.
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EMPLOYERS WILL PAY
THE ACTUAL BENEFITS
THE MORE YOU IMPROVE,
MORE FOR GOOD ENGLISH
vary depending on your country and sector.
THE BIGGER THE GAIN.
SKILLS regardless of
location or industry.
Potential salary benefits are often in excess of 50%.
Survey methodology Carried out in 2014–2015 among recruitment consultants, the research in this paper aimed to answer two vital questions: • How much do employers value
We wanted to determine the impact of the following three variables on the potential salary increases possible from improving English skills:
1.
DEGREE OF ENGLISH SKILLS
IMPROVEMENT including no English to
advanced level, beginner to intermediate, beginner to advanced, and intermediate to advanced.
better English? • How much more might they be prepared to pay workers who made an effort to brush up on English skills?
2.
INDUSTRY SECTOR including banking and finance, manufacturing, consulting, technology and IT, retail, and travel and tourism.
3.
REGION with respondents surveyed across Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico and the Middle East.
About EF We are the largest privately held education company in the world with more than 50 years of experience providing language training and other educational programs to young people, adults, businesses and other organizations.
Over the course of our history, we have developed methods that promote effective and lasting learning in a variety of settings, both online and offline. We have also observed first-hand how changes to traditional, school-based education can lead to dramatic improvements in people’s skills. EF understands not only how to educate English learners but also how to train their English teachers – and how to measure both learners and teachers for proficiency. We are ready to assist any organization that wishes to do these things to build a better foundation for future-ready business, innovation, and economic growth.
Contact EF fluency@ef.com +44 (0)207 341 8638
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