Top 20 salaries in Oman 2018

Just as the Gulf economies have undergone dramatic changes in recent months, including the introduction of value added tax and fee increases, we too felt it was time to shake up our annual Salary Survey.

While the format has served us well over the years, and offered a unique insight into the compensation expats could expect for a number of key roles, it was increasingly apparent that the included positions were not entirely reflective of the job market as we move towards the end of the decade.

In addition, a focus on largely management roles meant it offered less insight for the majority of the workforce, who are further down the ladder.

Our new streamlined Salary Survey for 2018 aims to address these issues in a simplified format that should prove relevant for the years to come as the gaps between Asian, Arabic and Western wages shrink.

Among the most noticeable changes has been the inclusion of the new lower tier positions such as human resources executive, logistics executive, sales executive and receptionist.

This meant that the overall average monthly salary this year of $8,083 is 26.3 per cent lower than that seen last year, with some quite substantial differences in some countries.

For example, the Oman average was 25.2 per cent lower than the previous year.

This year, Oman was found to be the second worst paying country among the five Gulf Cooperation Council states covered with an average monthly salary of $7,846.

This was 8.7 per cent less than the top paying country Saudi Arabia but only slightly ahead of the $7,826 Kuwait average and behind the $7,867 Bahrain average.

Oman was among the second top paying country for the head teacher/principal position, behind Kuwait at $10,830, but also the worst paying for a number of others.

One added complication for job seekers in the sultanate this year is the introduction of a six-month ban on the recruitment of foreign workers in 10 sectors introduced in January.

Officials recently indicated the ban could be applied to other sectors in the future.

Read: Oman could extend foreign worker ban to new sectors

Top salaries in Oman
(All the amounts are monthly averages taken from data collated by three recruitment firms)

CEO/MD – Multinational: $33,425

CEO/MD – Local company: $23,875

Hotel general manager: $13,870

Head teacher/principal: $10,830

Real estate manager: $8,405

Lawyer: $8,233

Construction project manager: $7,913

Human resources manager: $6,976

Recruitment manager: $7,239

IT manager: $7,333

PR account manager: $5,910

Sales/marketing manager: $5,307

Facilities management manager: $5,263

Healthcare general practitioner: $4,670

Editor: $4,820

Office manager: $4,619

Digital marketing specialist: $4,088

Bank branch manager: $2,769

Sales executive: $3,716

Logistics executive: $3,453

Senior accountant: $3,263

HR executive: $2,856

Receptionist: $1,620

Overall average: $7,846

The recruiters that participated in our survey continue to view the Gulf as an attractive place to work with average pay rises predictions across the region ranging from 2-3 per cent to 5 per cent this year.