Dubai: When looking for jobs, people normally tend to gravitate towards those that can have a positive impact in their lives, especially the ones that offer a good work-life balance, career growth and employment security.

But, given the cost of living these days, money seems to play a more important role in a job hunter’s decision to apply for a position. Who doesn’t want to earn a high salary, anyway?

In order to find out which professions offer the most cash in the UAE, Gulf News has crunched the latest salary figures compiled by the recruitment specialists at Hays.

The data that Hays provided were based on a survey of more than 4,000 working professionals in the UAE. And the salary figures apply to various fields, from accounting and finance, construction and engineering to human resources, office support and information and technology.

As can be expected, professionals that hold the highest positions, including chief executive officers and chief financial officers, bag the highest income, with a lucky few of them earning up to a whopping Dh200,000 a month.

Based on median salaries, however, sales professionals landed the top spot, followed by those who handle managerial roles in construction sites, including project managers, surveyors and facilities supervisors.

Lawyers claimed the third-biggest pay, closely followed by employees in the supply chain and accounting and finance fields.

At the bottom of the scale are office support professionals, which include receptionists, customer service staff, personal assistants, office managers and administrators.

Bear in mind, however, that the figures were culled from the information supplied by the respondents in Hays’ survey, and non-skilled workers, including janitors and cleaners, were not covered, so actual salaries and rankings may vary.

Here are the highest-paying and lowest-paying jobs in the UAE:

1.Sales professionals

Median monthly salary: 38,500



Highest: Sa l es director (40,000 to 91,500/ Average: 65,000)

Lowest: Sales support/executive (4,500 to 18,000/ Average: 12,000)

2. Construction/ project managers, surveyors, facilities supervisors, HSEQ professionals

Median monthly salary: 33,000





Highest: C-suite/principal level (55,500 to 200,000/ Average: 97,000)

Lowest: CAD technician(Range: 5,000 to 12,000/ Average: 9,500)

3. Lawyers

Median salary: 32,250

Highest: Chief legal officer/ general counsel (55,000 to 106,000/ Average:86,500)

Lowest: Legal coordinator/assistant (10,000 to 16,000/ Average: 13,000)

4. Supply chain professionals

Median salary: 31,250

Highest: Supply chain/procurement director (55,000 to 70,000/ Average: 55,500)

Lowest: Logistics officer/coordinator (8,000 to 17,000/ Average: 10,500)

5. Accountants and finance professionals

Median salary: 30,000



Highest: Group chief financial officer/ large firm (40,000 to 180,000/

Average:160,000)

Lowest: Accounts assistant (Range: 6,000 to 10,000/ Average 8,000)

6. Marketing executives

Median pay: 26,500

Highest: Chief marketing officer/VP Marketing (60,000 to 100,000

Average: 80,000)

Lowest: Marketing/ digital/PR/ social media executive (10,000 to 20,000/ Average: 15,000)

7. Architects and designers

Median pay: 25,500

Highest: Principal level (48,000 to 90,000/ Average: 60,000)

Lowest: Interior designer (11,000 to 20,000/ Average: 15,500)

8. Property/ leasing consultants

Median salary: 25,000



Highest: Senior development manager (50,000 to 65,000/ Average: 58,000)

Lowest: Leasing consultant (6,000 to 16,000/ Average: 10,000)

9. Human resources professionals

Median salary: 25,000



Highest : HR director (29,000 to 70,000/ Average: 50,000)

Lowest : Recruiter (5,000 to 11,500/ Average: 8,000)

10. Information technology directors, support staff/assistants

Median salary: 24,000

Highest : IT director/CIO (35,000 to 75,000/ Average: 51,500)

Lowest: IT support/Assistant (5,000 to 11,000/ Average: 7,500)

11. Engineers, assistant/ junior engineers

Median salary: 23,000

Highest: Project director (45,000 to 91,000/ Average: 65,000)

Lowest: Assistant/junior engineer (4,000 to 11,000/ Average: 6,000)

12. Receptionists, customer service, office support staff

Median salary: 17,000