NBN Co's median salary is $147,511

NBN Co’s median salary at the start of this year was $147,511, an amount the company said reflected its need for in-demand technical skills.

The company was asked for the “average” wage of an NBN worker by senator Sarah Hanson-Young in estimates, which it took on notice and in its response, chose to provide a median number instead.

The average, however, can be worked out for the last financial year, based on annual report [pdf] numbers, coming in at $140,958.

The figure is unlikely to be overly surprising, given that the single largest proportion of NBN Co staff fall into the $100,001 to $200,000 a year salary band.

NBN Co noted that the $147,511 amount is also inclusive of money that was previously “at risk” - dependent on the company’s performance.

The “at risk” component for most staff was folded into their base salaries after a furore over the millions of dollars being paid in this way, which saw the government alter its guidance.

Supporting documentation released with last year’s annual report states [pdf] that up to 87 percent of foregone “at risk” payments are now part of base salary.

The company said it needed to do that to “still be able to attract and retain the skills and experience needed to operate, protect, and improve the national broadband network over time.”

Similarly, in releasing the median salary figure, NBN Co said “it is important to note that the NBN Co employee base includes skills sets in high demand across the economy such as cyber security experts, software and network engineers, and design and construction specialists.”

It is possible to compare the median salary against other salary datasets that offer applicants a range for certain positions at NBN Co.

For comparative purposes, one data provider, Levels.fyi, puts the “common” salary range for a project manager at NBN Co between US$107,610 and US$125,150 ($160,849 to $187,067), while noting it could go even higher.

Payscale puts the overall average salary - base and bonus, which is now wrapped into the base for most staff - at about $124,000.

Based on its numbers, a salary of $147,511 would be the equivalent of a senior product manager or the low-end for a business development director.

Feedback on Glassdoor for NBN Co over several years consistently states that salaries are typically above average though not at the top end of the scale.