Everybody wants to know why there are so few young people working in tunnelling these days. It’s a common talking point, and there are probably several key points, but here’s one of the main reasons. Terrible pay!

I was doing some research recently for a talk I had to give at the British Tunnelling Society, and came across some pretty astonishing figures regarding engineer’s wages in the UK. Apologies if you were at the talk, this will be old news, but I think it’s worth repeating at this time where young engineers are becoming thinner on the ground.

I asked a recruitment consultant what a graduate engineer in the UK, who goes into tunnelling, can expect to earn. The system generally works like this, and these are just ballpark figures. A graduate engineer should look to be taken on for about £22,000 (US$45,000). Within two years the graduate should be a site/shift engineer commanding a wage of around £27,000 (US$55,276). Five more years down the line and things are looking up with a £34,000 (US$69,600) wage to be expected as a section/senior engineer. Ten years experience puts you into the realms of the sub agent/agent level where £42,000 (US$86,000) can be expected. Finally, with a minimum 20 years experience our graduate should have made it to the project management stage, and be looking at a haul of £50,000+ (US$102,350) per year.

I then went and talked to a friend who works in the technology sector in the city, where he runs a software support desk. Interestingly he has started to actively look to employ engineering graduates because of their high levels of numeracy, computer skills and a hard work ethic. Now compare the wages.

This is a real example of somebody he employed. The graduate was taken on at £22,000 (US$45,000). In one year he had made it up to £28,000 (US$57,326) after 2 years the wage has risen to a staggering £40,000 (US$81,900)?with the £50,000 (US$102,350) mark broken within three years!! This is without bonuses. Twenty years in tunnelling, three years in the city.

The truth is, if we want to entice the best of the engineering brains into the industry, we will need to match those industries that are draining our graduate resources by out pricing the wages on offer in tunnelling. Simple as that.

Tris Thomas


Tris