The average wage for a new job in travel reached a record high in July after breaking through the £29,000 barrier for the first time, according to the latest Travel Salary Index.
New candidate numbers have fallen again, as has the number of vacancies, according to the index, compiled by C&M Travel Recruitment and C&M Executive Recruitment.
With a 3.91% monthly rise, the average new travel role came with a salary of £29,286 in July, smashing the previous record figure of £28,382 which was set in April.
The rolling 12-month average stood at +4.95%, meaning that the barometer has remained above +4.5 per cent every month so far in 2019.
Salaries for standard travel jobs (those paying up to £40,000) rose by 5.81% in July, which is the largest month-on-month rise since last November.
Candidate and vacancy numbers both fell once again in July, but there were more positive signs as the number of new travel jobs being made available dipped by just 1% from June, while the number of new jobseekers fell by 0.5% from the same month last year.
C&M Recruitment director Barbara Kolosinska said: "The 4% rise in salaries is great to see and it’s very encouraging for the industry because it will potentially tempt some candidates back into the market in search of these excellent pay packages.
"But this doesn’t hide the fact that it remains a candidate-driven market with a continuing lack of quality active jobseekers.
"August always suffers from summer holiday distractions, so activity levels are likely to remain subdued in the final days of this month, but we’re hopeful that we’ll have a much-needed boost when September arrives."
