(9 August 2009 – See the 2009 edition of this list.)
This is the 2008 edition of my annual list of the top 100 jobs in terms of pay (see last year’s edition).
This list is compiled based on data from MOM Occupational Wages Survey, which is published as part of the Report on Wages in Singapore 2007.
As with previous years, the MOM survey does not capture performance bonuses, profit sharing and stock options.
To generate the list, I looked at the third-quartile monthly gross wages of the selected jobs published. Explanation: if you’re at the third-quartile, or 75th-percentile, your pay is higher than 75% of the people.
Here’s the top 100 best-paying jobs:
- Specialised surgeon – $30,755
- Managing director – $24,472
- General surgeon – $17,872
- Commodities futures broker – $17,464
- General manager – $16,667
- Company director – $15,513
- Creative director (Advertising) – $13,000
- Legal service manager – $12,318
- Foreign exchange dealer and broker – $11,095
- Operations manager (Finance) – $9,808
- Legal officer – $9,790
- Risk management manager – $9,600
- Research and development manager – $9,385
- Computer operations and network manager – $9,300
- Training manager – $9,000
- Computer and information systems manager – $8,930
- Ship-master – $8,671
- Technical manager – $8,595
- Financial futures dealer and broker – $8,447
- Personnel / Human resource manager – $8,420
- Business development manager – $8,290
- Corporate planning manager – $8,290
- Fund manager – $8,125
- Treasury manager – $8,079
- Budgeting and financial accounting manager – $8,000
- Marketing manager – $8,000
- Power generation and distribution engineer – $7,848
- Engineering manager – $7,819
- Chemical engineer (Petroleum) – $7,678
- Manufacturing plant and production manager – $7,645
- Chemical engineer (Petrochemicals) – $7,547
- Advertising and public relations manager – $7,533
- Advocate and solicitor – $7,500
- Operations research analyst – $7,500
- Business management consultant – $7,437
- Procurement manager – $7,416
- Lawyer (except advocate and solicitor) – $7,400
- Quality assurance manager – $7,263
- Customer service manager – $7,142
- Sales manager – $7,100
- Logistics manager – $7,050
- Operations manager (Commerce) – $6,862
- Chemical engineering technician (Petroleum) – $6,696
- Automation engineer – $6,680
- Instrumentation engineer – $6,616
- Book editor – $6,538
- Surveyor – $6,523
- Industrial health, safety and environment engineer – $6,503
- Building architect – $6,500
- Transport operations manager – $6,400
- Editor (Newspapers and periodicals) – $6,369
- Marine superintendent engineer – $6,340
- Audio and video equipment engineer – $6,307
- Premises maintenance manager – $6,304
- Personal banker – $6,250
- Chemist – $6,241
- Electrical engineering technician (High voltage) – $6,225
- Business analyst – $6,205
- General physician – $6,173
- Administration manager – $6,150
- Financial analyst – $6,000
- Securities dealer and broker – $5,750
- Shipping manager – $5,721
- Building and construction project manager – $5,720
- Property / Estate manager – $5,715
- Physicist – $5,700
- Editor (Radio, television and video) – $5,658
- Information technology security specialist – $5,646
- Advertising copywriter – $5,600
- Director (Stage, film, television and radio) – $5,512
- Automotive engineer – $5,500
- Naval architect – $5,480
- Chemical engineering technician (Petrochemicals) – $5,424
- Chinese physician – $5,316
- Financial planner – $5,283
- Aeronautical engineer – $5,242
- Chemical engineer (General) – $5,187
- Broadcasting operations technician – $5,178
- Market research analyst – $5,174
- Producer / Director of commercials – $5,150
- Manufacturing engineer – $5,137
- Systems programmer – $5,111
- Actuary – $5,100
- Production engineer – $5,091
- Sales representative (Technicial) – $5,089
- Database administrator – $5,080
- Semi-conductor engineer – $5,035
- Mechanical engineer – $5,000
- Ship rigger – $4,933
- Systems designer and analyst – $4,914
- Network systems and data communication analyst – $4,894
- Sales representative (Medical and pharmaceutical products) – $4,857
- Flight operations officer – $4,801
- Civil engineer – $4,746
- Script writer – $4,740
- Warehousing manager – $4,706
- Materials engineer – $4,689
- Electrical engineer – $4,665
- Credit analyst – $4,631
- Electronics engineer – $4,615
297 Comments
Good luck Colt. He just got 3 months bonus, shouldn’t be a problem for him to compensate you 😛
right and when will this masquerade cease?if the colt’s identity is wholly maintained by one person,then he is simultaneously a freshly minted high schooler(18) who owns a car, and works at an electrical company(senior enough to warrant an email address) and gives posers like ‘is getting a MBA is worth the extra school’?
whatever the case,daring the link between vandalism to arrogance on an online forum is mildly amusing.colt,do update us on the course of action with your lawyers (thats if you have any)
yeah exactly 🙂 online masquerade is fun isn’t it? 😛
hi,
i am currently working in an adverterising branding agency and i am 27 years old, drawing S$7,500 a month net pay.
I am looking for a similar role with higher pay, ranging from 9K net a month.
Reason is becuase I think i am undersalaried.
Is it possible for anyone to suggest any type of companies who can afford this wage level?
Maybe 2k now for chemistry grad.
eAiya go sell backside better
Wai Tat, plenty. but probably you are not ready if you dont know which are the ones.
Goodie:
Yes and gross total is $15 excluding all allowances
I thanks myself for having the ability and skills to perform very well and deliver results.
I am 28 years and I will work smarter.
Good! Finally something new. It would be tiresome to hear another year of your 12k, 28yr, 12k, 28yr, 12k, 28yr again.
Now all of us at salary.sg can look forward to another year of that new 28yr, 15k mantra of yours. I hope you’ll turn 29 soon too, so change a bit to 29yr, 15k lah, to make it a bit less boring.
Then we can move to 18k, 30yr, 18k, 30yr, 18k, 30yr in 2010. Seems you’re on the right track. Kudos!
I am suprise in the 2008 ranking that ship master salary (rank no:17) is not updated. Now the salary of ship master for Filipino, my company is paying USD 7,500 per month, equivalent to S$10,875 per month.
While for Singaporean and Malaysian, we are paying USD 9,500 per month, equivalent to S$13,775. One year work 8 months onboard and rest 4 months. Salary 12 months + 1 month AWS + 3 months bonus. If include bonus and AWS, it will come to S$18,366 per month for Singaporean and Malaysian. This salary is apply to container ship, tankers and AHT. For chemical tanker and LNG, salary will be 30% higher. Further, working onboard Singapore flag ship, all salary is tax exempted. I am welcome more Singaporean to go to sailing. Note: If any Singaporean or Malaysian possess COC class 1 foreign going, please kindly contact myself at 90060124, We are recruiting with AHT exprience.
Captain Thum, I do not have any AHT experience, but I’m willing to learn. Do you offer any training programmes?
Goodie – I’m glad what I am receiving this amount in times like this.
How about you? Care to advise?
haha
Ronnie, *of course* somebody like *you* will be glad lah! 🙂 Good for you!
What about me? This is about you and sharing your 15k, 28yrs mantra for the world, man.
Seriously, especially during this troubled times, people desperately NEED somebody like you who is only 28 yrs old and yet earns 15k to tell us how happy and contented you are. The more repetitions the better!
Looking forward to many years more of your repetitive updates! I can chart it off already, 30yrs, 18k, 31yrs, 21k, 32 yrs, 24k… Keep it up dude!
P.S.: You can probably request salary.sg admin (nicely!) to write a script to automate your message to save some work!
Hi,
In 2008, I was working in an account manager in a online publishing company – salary package of $75k per year. (75% fixed, 25% variable)
Now, I am working also as an account manager in a consulting company – salary package of $190k per year (70% fixed, 30% variable)
I am blessed to have such an employer now although the nature of both the jobs are similar.
Blessed, that is excellent indeed. Just goes to prove that if one keeps actively looking and doesn’t let himself to be limited by his own notion of how much one is supposed to earn, there’s _always_ a way.
High-Flyer Says:
October 13th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Folks, seems to me your jobs are just about earning pieces of papers to buy blocks of concrete
and metal pieces with wheels. I fly commercially for a living, and honestly, I would still do it for less money:)
Perks of the job are priceless: no boss, no meetings, travelling, girls, nice hotels, exotic food. Hell, work seems like holidaying, making off days so boring.
How valuable are pieces of money if you do not use them? How valuable are multiple properties if you can only sleep in one bed each night?
Thank goodness I am not in this crippling rat races of “rich people”. Haha.
Well said High-flyer, all the very best and safe flying.
I fly VIPs commercially too with a global private firm. Cheers
To Ronaldo,
I was away for some time flying VIPs around the world and just got back home after my tour of duty.
You are still talking and boasting about your 12K media director job ??? Get a life buddy !!! So many other readers can see through your Big Loop hole. Why not go and ask local KTV singers and escorts how much they make a mth ??? Your 12K are peanuts !!!! Wake up from your rich dream.
Thanks David Seah;
Gong Xi Fa Cai to you, & safe flying too. You are certainly one of the few who understands that our lives are meant to be experienced, and not to be “consumed” just by quantifying it with money.
However, what the heck, I bet your income is not too bad yourself.
I wanted to shut some of the rats up, but I am glad you did it first. Will be flying off to Europe for a few days to tour & relax, so enjoy yourself, man.
Cheers
HighFlyer
Gong Xi Fa Cai High-flyer.
Enjoy your Europe tour, cold it is over there though. Just got back from Zurich too.
Cheers and happy holiday
Big deal…pot calling the kettle black…all these irony and paradox…yawn
Pilot is seriously a good job
Pilots are a good vocation except the occupational risks are high – lots of reports on plane crashes and unexected deaths
All jobs carry risk. I am no mathematician, but judging by the huge number of NSF deaths compared to only 2 singaporean pilot deaths throughout history (silkair), NSF is a much riskier job than pilot. But pilots get paid 20-30x more than NSF! So based on risk-reward ratio, pilot is definitely a much better job than any other vocation.
Dear Anonymous,your anecdotes are unneeded and are not the least bit useful anyway.
1.Your statistics on pilot deaths are grossly incorrect.
2.Silkair is not one of the many vocations that the RSAF offers so you err atrociously in your premise for comparing the salaries of the NSF and pilot. A NSF has a vocation because he has to fulfill certain obligations to earn his citizenship. A Combat pilot does what he does for a LIVING, not for his citizenship.
3.Your ‘risk-reward’ ratio is based on an essentially wrong basis for comparison, thus, your argument does not make sense.
4.Do not mislead us by using the terms ‘vocation’ and job interchangeably. Your sense of a vocation refers instinctively at the military sort. The playing field for a military job and a civilian job are the elements of completely different playing fields and you cannot slap your know-it-all comparisons on them just like that. A combat pilot (disregarding all seniority in rank because a NSF cannot attain this criteria unless he has spent some years languishing in DB) definitely does not earn 20-30x more than a NSF serving as a Combat Officer.
Wait,he doesn’t even earn 20-30x more than the regular NSF(Rifleman) who holds the rank of a CPL in a combat vocation who brings home 400-500 per month.
To bring that one step further,are you even sure that a Combat Pilot earns 20-30x more than a freshly enlisted Army recruit?
May I enquire,where have you gotten your extravagant statistics from Mr Anecdotal Anonymous?
5.What is your point anyway?
So, do not wisen us with your motherhood statements.
Perhaps you didn’t get the drift but I was referring to commercial pilots and not combat pilots. I only used the word “vocation” because that’s what you used in your previous post (or are there two ronaldos here??)
About pilot risk: I know of only 2 commercial pilot deaths in the recent history of Singapore (Silkair MI 185). SQ6 pilots survived. However, there are at least half a dozen recruits who have died in recent years. True, flying is dangerous, but if the statistics are right, no more dangerous than serving NS.
All I’m saying is that in terms of risk-to-reward, I’d rather be a Malaysian pilot working for SQ making $271,888 per annum (http://www.salary.sg/2007/sq-pilots-pay/) than to be a Singaporean NSF making $6,000 per annum (wait, that’s 45x.. I underestimated!) any day.
The fact that one has no choice but to be an NSF doesn’t alter this. In fact, it makes being an NSF even more economically unattractive, as it is a job that is as risky as being a commercial pilot, pays 45x less and, worse still, even takes away your freedom to leave that job!
Point is, if I were to have a son, I’d make sure he was born in Malaysia, then pack him off to train as a pilot when he’s 18. When he qualifies as a first officer at 21, he’ll risk his life for $149,258 p.a. while his Singaporean NSF peers are risking theirs for $6,000 p.a.
No wise motherhood statements here.. just fatherhood principles, plain and simple.
Pardon my need for a rebuttal actually,but going by your very flawed risk to rewards logic,you are directly associating risk of death during NS term to the total number of NSF deaths. Having just completed my NS term,I am qualifed to state that those most prone to malladies (and fatal ones at that) during NS are those who are prone to malladies in real life anyway.
Just to sidetrack a bit,wouldn’t that explain that taxi drivers are getting the shorter end of the stick,since the rate of occurence of traffic accidents is so damn high?more than NSF deaths or air crashes for that matter.
They would have or wouldn’t have died with or without NS. The fact that they happened to die during their NS term is purely coincidental. How many deaths have we heard of, where a soldier is crushed by a tank?or killed by a bullet?Perhaps your imaginations of NS must be mental snippets from war films.
On the contary, a physically unfit soldier dying from strenuous exercise(a long jog?SOC?)is more of a run of the mill NSF death scenario.
Surely I say to you, the number is negligible.
Foreigners (by this,I am refering to the Koreans and Taiwanese in particular) remark at how much of a joke Singaporean National Service is,because of the slew of safety measures put in place by MINDEF.
Minimal outdoor activity in event of eminent lightning activity (Cat 1 to be specific), 6-7 hours of rest during normal training. Even those prone to the dangers of being previously unfit are categorized and seperated from the pack (Pes BP and Pes A/B PTP batch) and given progressive traning.
Or maybe you were horrified at how dangerous wandering through the jungle with nothing but several packets of combat rations is.
I am not ardent fan of NS (and I don’t buy that Boys to Men shit)for I lament how it interrupts my education schedule. But I will not whine lyrical with the wrong facts and attempt to raise my child a Malaysian.
If you were a Singaporean, I suspect you have not served in a combat unit. Probably got away with an imaginary disease coined by your favourite family doctor.
No wonder you do not understand the true risks of NS.
Anyway,
Happy New Year to you, sir.
oh and by the way,if you’re going to raise your son a malaysian,make sure he gets his PPL in Singapore,not Malaysia(Johor in particular).we wouldn’t want him destroying any foliage whilst getting his PPL.
try telling NSF parents that their sons who died because of overturned 3-tonners during training would have been prone to dying in a vehicular accident in civilian life anyway. were these guys who died prone to maladies? just because we only hear of those who have died from medical problems in the papers doesn’t mean that there are none who have died from exclusively military mishaps.
Anyway we are not here to debate NS. All I wanted to say was in response to your alter ego (the original Ronaldo?) that, sure, being a pilot is a risky job. But there are far riskier jobs for shittier pay. So if I could be a pilot, I definitely would. Don’t care so much about the risk.
haha, that’s a good one. hopefully he’ll be getting it in perth, with SQ.
yeah,no hard feelings alright.i was in the force for my NS term,controlling pilots from my air traffic control tower and it’s enough shit having pilots boss around with their devil may care attitude in controlled airspace. but its even shittier to hear people outside the force glorify these complete idiots on the basis of their high pay. well i hope your son turns out to be a good pilot if he so decides to be one.cheers
Dear Anonymous,
It is cruel fact that most general public have a very negative impression on pilots’ profession in particular. Salary too high most people will feel. But they forgot pilots do deserved to earn their attractive pay packages.
It does take episope like the below story, for the public to appreciate and recognise the profession as a Pilot, who made the miracle for passengers to walk away from any potential fatal crashes.
http://aircrewbuzz.com/2009/01/breaking-news-us-airways-a320-ditches.html
The most touching words from the passengers I recall …. this pilot’s excellent flying skills prevented the passenger’s wife from becoming a widow and children from becoming fatherless in a spilt second decision.
I rest my case. Cheers
hey, i am 16 this year. will be taking my “O” levels in a few months time. i was thinking if anyone here in this forum is a shipbroker/charterer? Or is able to tell me info shipbroking/chartering? Like for example experiences, salary(both basic and how much bonus you earned), workload.. etc. also, the route taken to this career, what qualifications you possess.
thank you!
hey, i noticed that the diagnostic radiographer is not in the 2008 list anymore. It was #75 last year and seems to have disappeared.
Can anyone tell me the average pay a diagnostic radiographer gets?
David: Fully agree. If a pilot makes a wrong decision, he loses not just his own life but that of few hundred passengers. Pilots fully deserve that pay. Ministers, on the other hand, can lose a terrorist…. and nothing happens to them.
hi guys. i see somethings been boiling in this forum. lets not be sarcastic or boastful about salaries and stuff. we are here to discuss abt the salary queries, arent we? anyway, the economy has been really bad now and many have lost their jobs. lets be contented with your current jobs cuz ure lucky that u still have the job! happy cny =)
wow. all you people fighting over how much each one earns etc etc. Ronaldo, you seem so proud earning the so called tons of money at your young age. well, if so i am happy for you. i came from a very very poor family. became a doctor and earned peanuts until i became a specialist surgeon. life was a struggle then. coming from rages to riches, i can only say one thing to all of you. MONEY ONLY SOLVES MONEY PROBLEMS. all the rest of the problems remain the same and dont go away. family problems, relationship problems, health problems etc etc. and in this current crises, why boast about how much you make and earn? is that all that really matters in life? what if your life is demanded of you today? what would it matter then how much you earn? i have seen 28yr old people die in front of me. i dont recall they telling me their salary on their death beds. all i recall him saying was AM I GOING TO DIE?
what about all those people that are losing their jobs daily? why boast about how much you earn when there are lots of children and families dependant on that guy who just lost his job and are now fearful that they may lose their homes? how will he face his family? how will he feed his children? come on, let he who boasts, boast in the Lord. Let another praise you and NOT from your own lips. a word of wisdom from Paul : 1. work hard with your hands. 2. Lead a quiet life. 3. Mind your own business. and DONT BOAST. Just give thanks for what you have. Especially in this current climate. let this forum be a place to help, encourage and advise one another. my 2 cents worth.
dear surgeon,on your anecdotal points 2 and 3,surely if we are not going to become selfish beings,then ‘leading a quiet life’ and ‘minding your own business’ seem like pretty inward looking principle’s innit? In your hippocratic oath did you not dedicate your life to the altruistic aim?
And if you haven’t noticed by now,the only way this forum is going is down.
People who visit this forum are in serious need of validation. (are you included?i know i am)
1. Professionals who are some what unsatisfied by their rice bowl, coming here to spy on what other people are getting.
2. Undergraduates whose sole attentions for their current energies sowed in studying are directed at the rewards of a lucrative salary.
But surgeon,are you well aware that we are end products of a capitalist system?It seems highly suspcious that you,with high minded rhetoric has found yourself at this forum that is very suspicious.
We are the decline of society. Leave us to our own devices.
shut the F up ronaldo. i am sure that your comments and participation are no longer required here in this forum. the way that you are trying to portray yourself in this forum really makes me want to puke.
dear ferguson, i am sure that i would be better off in real madrid. I’m sure that you weren’t puking when you first saw me blazing down the flanks. and you are the one who should be retiring from this forum. I don’t think you are young enough for a career change. oh wait. maybe Home United or what may want you
He is useful for this forum lah. Every forum needs somebody like ronaldo to create more traffic 😛 I bet threads with ronaldo “12k, 28yrs” posts are among the longest threads ever in salary.sg 🙂
ronaldo, your sarcasm bore me to death, can you come up with something more entertaining?
lets ignore this poser, he is not worth our attention
Tom, he already upgraded a bit to keep you entertained no? From “12k, 28yrs” to “15k, 28yrs”.
I mean of course basically he’s just saying the same thing again and again, but now got 15k leh! 😛 (15k leh!!!)
anecdotal comments? err. those comments were not mine. they were taken right out of the bible. i wouldnt make light of it sir. i really wouldn’t. you also said we are the decline of society? err..i dont think so about myself. i have taken an oath to help others and that is my calling. pro bono work is part of my life. maybe you should consider that doing something to help others too and not be too full of yourself. i will not reply any more.
Any idea what are the type of job that can have an increment of 3k per year like Ronaldo’s? If every year I got 3k increment, in 10 years time………..
In 10 years time he’ll be going “42k, 28yrs”… “42k, 28yrs”… “42k, 28yrs”… I’m so proud of myself yada yada…
other people might be getting higher wages than me.
but i am only under 30 years old & my salary already is 15K.
i don’t feel sad or demoralised about my salary. i feel satisfied.
i believe i am worth much more though, looking at 18k above.
Cheers!
Ron
my take home after cpf is 14,099.
whats there to complain about?
my weekly personal ent expenses was 1 to 1.5K but now because of global economic reccession, i cut down to 700 to 1 K max.
Other expenses like food to be 400 per week.
all in all, i am fairly happy with myself.
Ron
ronaldo you fool, dont you get it? everyone here is mocking at your so called 12k and 15k at the age of 28 and you are still going on with your tall tales? LOL
After all these months, my son Ronaldo, is still talking about his pay? To everyone else, pls ignore my mad son, & ignore him from now onwards & dont bother replying to his garbage.
The more agitated u become, the more excited he gets. JUST IGNORE HIM, SIMPLE… until of course he change his nick. But Im sure we can spot him cos he is gonna talk about his $15K pay again.
doctor is seriously a good job too. can help others and make lots of money at the same time. win in both heaven and earth