The 2006 U.S. Ethanol Industry Salary Survey was conducted in accordance with accepted research standards and practices. A complete report containing all survey results was provided to EPM, and the following information, graphics and editorial interpretation were gleaned from that data. This year’s survey was conducted completely via e-mail from Sept. 11-13. The results are based on the 309 respondents who indicated they work full time at an operating U.S. ethanol production facility.
The purpose of the survey was to provide a profile of U.S. ethanol plant personnel salary compensation. Specific areas of inquiry included:
--Respondent’s demographics—gender, age and education level
--Respondent’s professional qualifications—years of employment in the ethanol industry
--Respondent’s current work situation—nature of organization, size of organization, job responsibilities and job satisfaction
--Respondent’s current annual salary and compensation benefits
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As with any research, the results of this survey should be interpreted with the potential of what Readex calls “non-response bias” in mind. It is unknown how those who responded to the survey may be different from those who didn’t respond. In general, the higher the response rate, the lower the probability of estimation errors due to non-response and thus, the more stable the results.
The margin of error for percentages based on 309 usable responses is plus or minus 5.2 percent at the 95 percent confidence level. That is, 95 percent of the time, Readex is confident that percentages in the actual population (i.e., the U.S. ethanol industry) wouldn’t vary by more than this in either direction. The margin of error for percentages based on smaller sample sizes will be larger.
Before getting into the details, let’s start with the essential salary findings.
Demographics
The typical respondent to this year’s survey is 42 years old. According to the results, 87 percent of respondents have completed at least some college, including 72 percent who are college grads. Males (85 percent of respondents) outnumbered females (15 percent of respondents) by over a five-to-one margin.
Facility Profile
Respondents said the size of the ethanol plant they are employed at is, on average, 55.7 MMgy. At the categorical extremes, 12 percent said their facilities are less than 20 MMgy and 17 percent said their facilities are 100 MMgy or larger.
It’s worth noting that veterans who have worked in the ethanol industry for more than 15 years aren’t much more likely to work in a plant that’s larger than 100 MMgy (27 percent) as one that is 40 MMgy to 59 MMgy (25 percent) or even less than 20 MMgy (21 percent). That said, the survey results clearly show that ethanol plant employees with greater than 15 years of experience are 10 percent to 13 percent more likely to work at 100-plus MMgy facilities than their less-seasoned colleagues.
About half—52 percent—of ethanol plant employees with less than five years of experience are working at 40 MMgy to 60 MMgy facilities. That appears to make sense since a good number of U.S. ethanol plants built in the last half-decade have been of that particular capacity. On the other hand, only 7 percent of respondents with less than five years on the job are working at the smallest (20 MMgy or less) plants.
Interestingly, 39 percent of the “corporate managers” who responded to the survey said they are employed at 100-plus MMgy plants, while only 11 percent of them work at 20 MMgy to 30 MMgy plants. This may represent the fact that larger ethanol production companies are more inclined to create corporate management positions, while smaller facilities may opt to have a more traditional model, where a general manager answers directly to a board of directors.
Of those ethanol plant employees who have received a raise due to a promotion and/or change in responsibilities, most (67 percent) work at facilities that produce 59 MMgy or less annually. However, that may be statistically insignificant because a corresponding 69 percent of respondents who haven’t received a raise from their employer as a result of a promotion and/or a change in responsibilities also work for plants that are 59 MMgy or smaller.
Work Profile
Overall, the people who responded to this years survey are quite experienced, having been employed in it over eight year’s, on average. However, it’s clear that newer professionals, as well as more experienced professionals, are represented in this population. Approximately 11 percent of respondents have been employed in the ethanol industry less than one year compared to approximately 9 percent who have been employed in it for 20 years or more.
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