GWU Australia survey shows 19% of direct employees aren't making minimum wage
Only 27% of respondents felt their employment was secure in both long and short-term
A survey of 258 developers across Australia revealed that 19% of full-time workers were being paid less than the guaranteed minimum wage for workers in the technology industry under the Australian Professional Employees Award 2010.
The survey from Game Workers Unite Australia found that 50% of the total surveyed were employed directly, while the rest were a mix of hobbyists, contractors, freelancers, or self-described in other ways.
Of those 50%, 19% were making $50,000 AUD/year or less, which is under the minimum $51,498 AUD required by the Professional Employees Award 2010.
However, it may be an improvement over last year's survey of 155 developers, of which 52% were employed directly and which found 35% of full-time employees were making under $50,000 a year.
Additionally, the survey showed 59% of respondents identifying as male, 18% as female, 6% as non-binary, agender, or other, and 17% not responding.
And finally, only 27% of those surveyed said they felt their employment was secure, with others expressing either short or long-term concerns. Earlier this year, EA laid off around 50 staff from its Australian FireMonkeys studio, which GWU Australia at the time estimated may amount to around 5% of the total Australia game development workforce.