Figure 5. In spite of anxiety over job and frustration about what cutbacks have meant, most process automation specialists aren't in it just for the money. One chart that remains remarkably unchanged is the one that ranks what gives our respondents the most job satisfaction. What they want, more than job security (12%), a chance for advancement (13%), appreciation (14%) or a decent salary and benefits (19%), is challenging work (42%). And in response to a question in our Basic Skills Survey, in spite of all the difficulties, 73% of respondents said they are happy in the automation profession, and another 25% said they were happy at least some of the time. That same 73% said they'd encourage their children to enter the profession.
Profile of a Process Engineer
The people who answered our survey
- Earn more than $60,000 a year (72%)
- Work 40 to 60 hours a week (72%)
- Do not get overtime pay (75%)
- Get three weeks a year or more vacation time (82%)
- Are over 45 (53%)
- Are male (95%)
- Live in U.S. (60%), Asia (15%), Europe, (13%), Canada (6%), Latin America (5%)
- Are Caucasian (72%), Asian (15%), Hispanic (5%), Black (3%), other (5%)
- Are married (81%), with children (78%)
- Have a college degree (72%), have an advanced degree (23%)
- Have degrees in everything from electrical engineering (37%) to such diverse fields as accounting, marketing, food science and psychology.
- Work in engineering, design and construction (40%), plant maintenance (17%) or production and plant operations (14.5%)
- Have worked for no more than three companies during their career (66%)
- Have been in process control longer than 10 years (67%)
- Works in the oil and gas (19%), chemical (12%), food and beverage (8%) or other industries.
Perks and Bennies Down Too
Benefits also are not what they were. This year 90% of respondents reported having medical benefits, down from 98% last year, and 71% said they had dental coverage, down from 89% last year—an 18% drop. Life insurance coverage is down 13% from last year at 75%, and disability insurance is down 19% from 77% in 2009 to 58% this year, although these numbers may reflect, in part, a larger group of respondents from outside North America.
Only 44% say their companies offer pension plans, down from 48% last year, and only 55% say they have a 401k plan, down from 90% last year.
As for other perks, a few folks report everything from company cars (13%), flex time (27%) and tuition reimbursement (40%) to overseas housing allowances, an on-site gym, and the intriguing entry "meat."
One unexplaned anomaly is the 12% who say they can telecommute, while only two respondents report having a company-supplied cell phone and laptop.
The Demographic Bomb