September 2022 - Parks & Recreation - 20

RESEARCH
The 2022 NRPA Park and
Recreation Salary Survey
By Melissa May
A
s the nation and the economy continue to recover from the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic, the labor market has grown even
tighter. During spring 2022, labor force participation continued
to lag pre-pandemic levels, while empowered workers switched
jobs more frequently than they had in the past as a part of the " Great Resignation. "
Consequently, park and recreation agencies must offer compensation
packages for their staff that include competitive salaries and robust
benefits to attract and retain the best and brightest for their teams.
The 2022 NRPA Park and Recreation
Salary Survey report (nrpa.org/
SalarySurvey) features detailed base
salary and bonus data for 10 typical
park and recreation agency positions.
Comprehensive compensation data
provide park and recreation agency
leaders with guidance on how to
attract the best candidates for their
staff. Such data also can provide insights
into salary and benefits offered
by potential employers.
The 2021 to 2022 median salary increases
for 10 typical park and recreation
agency positions are as follows:
* Park and Recreation Agency Director
(or Executive Director or
Superintendent): +3.1%
* Planning Director (or Superintendent):
+3.5%
* Director of Finance (or Administrative
Director
Manager): +3.2%
* Recreation Director (or Recreation
Superintendent or Assistant
Director - Recreation):
+3.4%
* Park
Operations
* Park Operations
Director
(or
Maintenance Director or Maintenance
Superintendent): +3.5%
(or Maintenance
Foreman): +3.8%
* Facilities Manager: +3.1%
or Business
* Athletics Supervisor (or Athletics
Manager): +3.4%
* Aquatics Supervisor (or Aquatics
Manager): +3.5%
* Recreation Programs Coordinator
(or Recreations Programs
Manager): +3.4%
Benefits
Worker
compensation
is
about
more than just salaries and bonuses.
Benefits, including paid time off,
insurance and retirement plans, can
represent nearly a third of a worker's
total compensation and include:
* Time off: Park and recreation
agencies
typically
provide
10
days of annual vacation to their
newly hired full-time employees.
After five years of employment,
the median number increases to
15 days per year, growing to 20
days after 10 years of service.
Agencies
typically provide 12
days of annual sick leave.
* Maternity and paternity leave: A
third of park and recreation agencies
currently offer specific paidleave
benefits associated with the
birth or adoption of a child. Eleven
percent of agencies provide
specific paid maternity benefits;
22 percent provide specific paid
20 Parks & Recreation | SEP T EMBER 2 0 22 | PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
maternity and paternity benefits.
* Health insurance: Park and recreation
agencies cover a median
84 percent of their employees'
health insurance premiums.
* Retirement options: Forty-three
percent of agencies offer their
employees defined benefit (DB)
plans and defined contribution
(DC) plans, providing a greater
diversity of retirement options for
their staff. More than three in four
agencies have a DB program as
part of the compensation packages
they offer to newly hired, fulltime
employees; 67 percent offer
a DC plan either in conjunction
with a DB plan or as the sole retirement
benefit offering.
Minimum Wage Policy and
Seasonal Employees
Part-time and seasonal workers are
essential contributors to park and
recreation agencies. Part-time and
seasonal employees typically receive
compensation at or just above
minimum wage. The lowest hourly
wage paid by nearly two-thirds of
park and recreation agencies is the
statutory minimum wage to which
they are subject. At 15 percent of
agencies, the minimum wage paid
matches the current federal minimum
wage of $7.25 per hour; another
48 percent of agencies pay a
locality/state minimum wage that
is higher than the federal minimum.
The full 2022 NRPA Park and Recreation
Salary Survey report with
comprehensive salary data, sample
job descriptions, sample organization
charts and a benefits breakdown
can be accessed at NRPA
Connect (connect.nrpa.org).
Melissa May is Senior Research Manager
at NRPA (mmay@nrpa.org).
http://nrpa.org/SalarySurvey http://nrpa.org/SalarySurvey http://connect.nrpa.org
September 2022 - Parks & Recreation

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