Fair Wages?

While a wealth of compensation plans are currently in play for today’s kitchen and bath designer/salespeople, the end result for many still includes long hours and less-than-stellar salaries – especially among women in the field. However, on the positive side, more kitchen and bath dealerships seem to be offering medical benefits and flexible hours than in years past.

These were the findings of a new compensation survey, in which Kitchen & Bath Design News polled more than 250 kitchen and bath designer/salespeople from across the U.S., looking at salary, benefits, commission structure and more.

If the survey is any indication, designer/salespeople seem to be struggling financially, with more than a third of those surveyed (35%) reporting that they are currently making less than $50,000 a year (see Graph 1). Even more disturbing was the clearly defined salary gap between the genders – of those making less than $35,000 per year, a whopping 90% were female. By contrast, 100% of those making over $250,000 per year were male, suggesting that the gender gap is alive and well in 2007.

Of those surveyed, 31% reported earnings in the $50,000-$75,000 per year range, 17% said they were earning $75,000-$99,000 per year, 12% were bringing in $100,000-$149,999 annually, and 5% were earning in excess of $150,000
per year.

Benefits

When it comes to benefits, the good news for designer/salespeople is that dealerships offering medical coverage seem to be on the rise. In fact, 80% of those surveyed said they receive medical insurance as part of their benefits package, compared to 60% in a similar survey done five years ago.

Unfortunately, this seems to be the only benefit the majority of those surveyed receive. Less than half of those surveyed (48%) had a company 401(k) plan, while 46% received dental insurance, 43% garnered an end-of-year bonus, 39% received life and/or disability insurance, 22% had profit sharing, 21% enjoyed use of a company car and 8% received stock options (see Graph 2).

Still, while the majority of those surveyed are not receiving a host of benefits, the percentage of designer/salespeople receiving dental insurance, a 401(k) plan and an end-of-year bonus was still up significantly from reports from a similar survey done in 2002.

Also interesting to note was that some 13% of those surveyed reported receiving “other” benefits – including cell phone expenses, gas and mileage allowances and flex-time, among others – which is nearly four times the number of employees who reported receiving such extras back in 2002. While the rapidly rising cost of gas may account for some of this, it also appears that dealerships are recognizing the importance of offering flexible benefits and schedules to retain valued designer/salespeople.

Figuring Commision

When it comes to determining how designer/salespeople are paid, the number and type of plans vary widely. As noted kitchen and bath consultant Hank Darlington explains, “In the kitchen and bath industry, there are almost as many commission programs as there are businesses.” Darlington relates several common commission plans in his “Personnel” column this month (see related story, Work Compensation Strategies and Examples).

Among those surveyed, the most common compensation plan was one that blended salary and commission. Indeed, 38% of those surveyed had a pay structure that included both a set salary and a commission element. Additionally, 22% said they are paid straight salary, 19% noted that they are paid strictly by commission, 15% reported that they are paid an hourly wage and 6% said they receive some other compensation package (see Graph 3).