If you head over to the BBC Careers website, every job will include a salary band indicating how much is on offer for the successful candidate. Unfortunately, its often disguised as a letter rather than the lower and upper salary bands as expect.
If only there was an article that provided that information easily…oh wait!
Why the BBC hides salary information?
Like most public institutions, the BBC need to include the salary band each role falls into. However, as we mentioned, its often hidden behind a letter (A to F) and digging up information to work out the salary bands can take a while.
Most employers tend to avoid publishing salaries on job adverts for any number of reasons. We cannot speculate why the BBC specifically has hidden their salary bands, but here’s a few reasons why other companies hide it:
- Open-minded employers – Roles are a lot more fluid nowadays and even a job advert isn’t the definitive overview of what a role might or might not entail. Therefore, companies may be open to taking on a candidate making the step up to the role or they might be looking for someone with the experience to hit the ground running. If the employer is open to both options, then stating a salary could put off both candidates.
- Negotiating Power – By withholding the salary bands, employers are naturally given more power during the contract negotiations. Even though salary bands can often be extended for the right candidate, employers would rather you didn’t know this – saying its the top of the salary band sounds final.
- Current Employees – Imagine your employer advertising the same role but for more money, suddenly you know you’re underpaid and deserve a payrise. Keeping salary figures hidden from job adverts can ensure current employees feel valued.
- Industry comparisons – Every industry is different and they’ll structure pay packages accordingly. However, within an industry, companies will often compare their salary packages to their rivals and adjust as needed. Some companies may offer an excellent stepping stone for young graduates to enter the market – training them up on a lower salary before they move up. Different companies will pay different amounts for the same skills.
BBC Salary bands
Thankfully, a recent Freedom of Information (FOI) request means the BBC has published the salary bands for all positions. Those are as follows:
| Broad Band | Minimum | Maximum |
| A | £20,000 | £30,000 |
| B | £22,500 | £37,000 |
| C | £25,000 | £49,000 |
| D | £32,250 | £63,000 |
| E | £47,250 | £80,000 |
| F | £60,000 | £110,000 |
In addition, Band SL is reserved for Senior Leaders (hence the initials) at the organisation. Many of them will be on salary packages in excess of £100,000. It’s worth noting that the BBC publishes details about all senior executives earning more than £150,000 per annum.
In addition, the salary figures listed above are adjusted each year based on a group-wide pay rise figure – usually calculated from inflation figures.
BBC Employee Benefits
As part of our new Industry Info section, we’ve compiled a list of benefits available to BBC employees – covering everything from their pension, annual leave, medical cover and other benefits. Take a look:
How do I know what they’ll offer?
If you’re successful during the interview stages and the BBC offer you a role, you’ll have a salary band attached to your role. Yet, there could be up to £50k difference between the lower and higher ends of band F.
There will be a variety of factors that affect how much they’ll offer within the role’s salary band. Firstly, the location is a major factor – London-based roles tend to attract higher salaries due to higher living costs. Salaries for roles outside of the capital tend to be lower than their London counterparts. Secondly, it depends on your experience – if you’ve got plenty of relevant experience, you’re more likely to be offered a generous package.
Putting Together an Amazing Application
The BBC provides so much information for jobseekers on their careers pages, but we’ve put together our top tips to help you ace the application and make sure you come across as one of the strongest applicants.
Final Thoughts
The BBC is a world-renowned media organisation and many employees recognise working for such a large name can be hugely beneficial for their future careers. At the same time, the BBC are known for offering competitive salary figures, so you can be sure that your offer will be appropriately based on experience.
Want to find out about the latest jobs at the BBC, we’ve got over 70+ jobs active on the website right now!