Dental Care Professionals pay survey 2010

Transcription

1 Dental Care Professionals pay survey 2010 Introduction Since 2001, the BDA has conducted quantitative research on market pay rates for Dental Care Professionals (DCPs) across the UK. Members can use this information, combined with their knowledge of the local labour market, to make informed business decisions regarding DCPs salaries. The 2010 Dental Care Professionals Pay Survey The 2010 DCP pay survey was designed to collect data on pay rates for all employed Dental Care Professionals. Separate tables have been produced for each DCP group and where possible the data is broken down by region, years of experience, NHS/private split, the number of dental nurses working at the practice, and whether the practice is a specialist practice or owned by a Body Corporate. The results reflect the hourly pay rates as at October Responses were received from 669 practices representing over 4,000 DCPs. The response rate was 33 per cent. Details of the method, and sampling are given in Appendix 2. Full results tables are available in Appendix 1.

2 Summary of results Table 1 shows the average hourly rate for dental care professionals, as at September The number of DCPs that the data relates to is shown in the column titled Base. Table 1: Average hourly rates for Dental Care Professionals as at September 2010 Lower quartile Median Upper quartile Base 4 Registered dental nurses ,000 Trainee dental nurses Employed hygienists Employed therapists Receptionists Practice managers Dental nurses who have completed a registerable qualification such as NVQ3. 2 Dental nurses have not yet completed a registerable qualification. 3 Including DCPs with a mixed hygienist/therapist role 4 This is the unweighted base (see Appendix 2 for details of weighting) Explanation of lower quartile, median and upper quartile The median, and upper and lower quartiles are statistical measures that summarise the distribution of hourly wage rates. The lower quartile hourly rate indicates that 25 per cent of staff earn that rate or less. The median hourly rate indicates that 50 per cent of staff earn that rate or less. The upper quartile hourly rate indicates that 75 per cent of staff earn that rate or less. Further analysis of each Dental Care Professional group can be found in Appendix 1. This is where you will find breakdowns by factors that influence pay rates such as experience, NHS commitment, and location of the practice. Making use of the survey findings To calculate an appropriate hourly rate for your staff, you may choose to consider the following data: regional variation, years of experience (which is a proxy for higher competencies and/or responsibilities), NHS/private split of the practice, and also additional qualifications held by the staff member. Figure one below shows how these factors influence the average pay rates for trained dental nurses.

3 Figure 1: Average pay for trained dental nurses Many other factors will need to be considered before setting the actual hourly rate such as having a competitive pay rate that encourages recruitment, enables retention of staff and keeps staff morale high, as well as complying with National Minimum Wage rates. This would require that you supplement the BDA s findings with information on pay rates for other local jobs. Such information could be assessed from local newspapers, employment agencies and at local job centres. DCP registration, and the associated costs involved, may also affect your ability to recruit new and retain existing staff and as such this should also be given consideration when setting your pay rates. Table 2: National Minimum Wage rates as at November 2010 Worker s age Minimum wage 21 and over (Source:

4 Furthermore, it is important to note that paying staff solely on experience or length of service can, in some cases, be unlawful age discrimination. It would, for example, likely be unlawful to pay a 40 year old nurse with 15 years' experience more than a 30 year old nurse with five years' experience if the role they did was identical. However, it is acceptable to pay experienced staff or staff who have been at your practice longer if awarding or increasing pay or benefits is meant to reflect a higher level of experience of the employee, or to reward loyalty, or to increase or maintain the motivation of the employee. Members should contact the BDA s Practice Support Team for advice if they wish to use a pay scale relating to length of service or experience. Looking to the future The most important survival strategy a business must have is one that ensures that all business costs are covered by the income it receives. A successful business is one that is able to cover all related operating costs, has some financial reserves for contingencies, considers future outgoings and is in profit. Deciding on a pay increase for staff is a business decision that also requires consideration of the economic climate and more importantly the practice profitability. Any change in business outgoings should be carefully considered. A cashflow forecast is recommended so that you can evaluate changes in outgoings and the income you will require to cover them. Prospective pay awards for DCP s can be based on any one or combination of the following: the current headline rate of inflation the current headline rate of average earnings growth NHS fee scale or contract uplifts Forecasts of the rate of inflation or rate of average earnings growth. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.1 per cent in the year to September 2010, whilst the Retail Price Index (RPI) rose by 4.6 per cent over the same period 1. The Average Earnings Index (AEI) rose by 2.2 per cent (excluding bonus payments) in the year to September Independent forecasts (dated November 2010) suggest that CPI will rise by 2.6 per cent in 2011, RPI by 3.5 per cent 3. The information from the BDA Pay Survey is designed to be used as a starting point and is intended to be informative rather than prescriptive. For further information or advice, members in England and Wales should practicesupport@bda.org or call , whilst members in Scotland and Northern Ireland should a.pitcaithley@bda.org or call For further advice about business relating outgoings, the BDA advice sheet C8 Fee Setting may be of use. 1 HM Treasury pocket databank 17 November

5 Annex 1 Results

6 Registered dental nurses 25 th Average hourly pay rate Median 75 th Count Count UK Country England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia Years of experience NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % private Number of dental nurses Corporate Yes No Specialist practice Yes No Post qualification certificate Yes No Unknown

7 Trainee dental nurses 25th Average hourly pay rate Median 75th Count Count UK Country England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia Years of experience NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % private Number of dental nurses Corporate Yes No Specialist practice Yes No

8 Employed dental hygienists 25th Average hourly pay rate Median 75th Count Count UK Country England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia Years of experience NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % private Number of dental nurses Corporate Yes No Specialist practice Yes No

9 Employed dental therapists* 25th Average hourly pay rate Median 75th Count Count All Therapists * Including hygienists/therapists

10 Receptionists 25th Average hourly pay rate Median 75th Count Count UK Country England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia Years of experience NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % private Number of dental nurses Corporate Yes No Specialist practice Yes No

11 Practice managers 25 th Average hourly pay rate Median 75 th Count Count UK Country England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia Years of experience NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS % private Number of dental nurses Corporate Yes No Specialist practice Yes No

12 Annex 2 Sampling

13 Method and response A stratified random sampling method was used to select a sample of 1,400 practice owners in England, 200 in Wales, 200 in Scotland, and 200 in Northern Ireland. This sample excluded retired dentists and members currently living overseas. Practice owners in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland deliberately oversampled to ensure that an adequate number of responses were received to allow detailed analysis. The survey was circulated by post in early September A reminder was sent to everyone who had not responded in late September. In total, 669 responses were received representing over 4,000 DCPs. The response rate was 33 per cent. Weighting To account for the stratified sampling method across the UK, the data has been weighted to represent BDA membership as at August 2010 with regards to the proportions of practice owners in each of the four nations. The following weights have been used: Country Weighting England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Respondent characteristics Count Count UK Country Northern Ireland Scotland Wales England England regions Greater London Southern England South West England Midlands North East England North West England East Anglia NHS % NHS % NHS % NHS