Society of Quality Assurance demographic and salary survey

A demographic and salary survey of the Society of Quality Assurance (SQA) was completed in early 1995. This survey was undertaken by the SQA Board of Publications and is the second to be commissioned by the Society. The SQA survey addressed demographic information, employer information, job description, and salary data. A total fo 399 responses were received--60% from women and 40% from men. The median age of respondents was between 36 and 40 years. Most respondents had at least a bachelor's degree and major fields of training were in the areas of biology and chemistry; however, nearly half responding listed other fields of expertise. Approximately 99% of respondents had at least some Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) experience; however, most had little or no Good Clinical Practice (GCP) or current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) experience. A majority of respondents listed pharmaceuticals, contract research, industry, or chemicals/pesticides/petroleum as best describing their facility. Forty-one percent of respondents were auditors or inspectors (approximately half of all respondents did not supervise others) and 34% were managers or directors. Quality assurance (QA) responsibilities included performing inspections/audits, QA program development, reporting to upper management, and hosting outside auditors. Other activities, such as computer validation, budget management, and archive maintenance, were less frequent. Overall, annual salaries were approximately $20,000 or less (3.6%); $20-30,000 (9.8%); $30-40,000 (20.8%); $40-50,000 (22.6%); $50-60,000 (17.3%); $60-70,000 (10.5%); $70-80,000 (6.9%); and $80,000 or more (8.5%). The median annual salary for the survey was $45-50,000 per year. Salaries increased with education and years of experience. For example, annual salaries ranged from $25-30,000 for 2-5 years of experience to $50-60,000 for > 20 years of experience. Median annual salaries were substantially higher for pharmaceutical and chemical/pesticide/petroleum companies ($50-60,000) compared to contract research laboratories ($35-40,000). Salaries for consultants were highly variable, ranging from under $15,000 per year to > $100,000 per year.