Hoteliers originating from Australasia are the best paid in the Middle East’s hospitality industry, according to the findings of Hotelier Middle East’s inaugural Salary Survey which took place online last month.

And while South Africans were the next best paid – with Mediterranean Europeans and North Americans all making the top five – the widely-held belief that Westerners universally earn more than local Middle Eastern hoteliers proved not to be true.

Lebanese hotel employees, for example, are the third highest paid, earning around 80% of their Australasian colleagues, on average, when North Americans took home just 74% of the Aussie haul.

Further down the list, Emiratis command 4.6% higher wages than Western Europeans, with Jordanian hoteliers edging out staff from both those countries.

The bottom of the pile has a more familiar feel about it, with hotel employees from the Indian Subcontinent, Morocco, Syria and the Far East near the foot of the table (Far Eastern hoteliers have salaries that are, on average, just 31% of those taken home by Australian hotel staff).

Most surprisingly, perhaps, is that Bahrainis were glued to the very bottom of the salary table, earning 3% less than even Far Eastern employees.

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These results were averages across all countries, sectors and levels; other factors such as living costs, role and seniority should, of course, be considered.

Results displayed as a percentage of the top result

1.    Australasia       
2.    South Africa (94%)
3.    Lebanon (80%)
4.    Med Europe (76%)
5.    North America (74%)
6.    Jordan (66%)
7.    Eastern Europe (63%)
8.    UAE (61%)
9.    Western Europe (59%)
10.    Egypt (53%)
11.    Indian Subcont (45%)
12.    Morocco (38%)
13.    Syria (38%)
14.    Far East (31%)
15.    Bahrain (30%)