Here’s a clue – they hold a knife, wear masks, but definitely aren’t general practitioners.
The Australian Taxation Office has released its latest data – from 2021-2022 – on the highest-paid jobs in Australia. Surprise! Medical professions fill five of the top 10 places.
Surgeons top the list, as they have done every year since 2010-11, with an average taxable income of $460,356 per annum, up $3075 on the previous year – the highest it has been since 2010-11.
Anaesthetists come in second – again, their perennial finishing spot – with $431,103 per annum, up $4299 on the previous year.
Internal medicine specialists are fourth with $340,729 (up $6462), psychiatrists fifth with $276,545 (up $6133), and “other medical practitioners” come in sixth with $255,754 (up $4032).
“Generalist medical practitioners” haven’t featured in the top 10 since 2012-13, when they snuck into 10th with an average taxable income of $144,369.
To provide some context, it’s worth noting that the average Australian wage was $72,327 per annum. But the median wage was just $53,041.
Here is the full top 10:
- Surgeon $460,356 (up $3075);
- Anaesthetists $431,193 (up $4299);
- Financial dealer $373,733 (up $31,935);
- Internal medicine specialist $340,729 (up $6462);
- Psychiatrist $276,545 ($6133);
- Other medical practitioners $255,754 (up $4032);
- Mining engineer $214,365 (up $18,187);
- Judicial or other legal professional $204,934 (up $11,546);
- Chief executive officer or managing director $197,720 (up $20,214);
- Financial investment advisor or manager $185,834 (up $13,226).
Related
Other numbers:
- the full-time adult average weekly earnings (seasonally adjusted) in November 2023 were $1888.80, or about $98,200 annually;
- the median weekly income was $1300 (before tax) or $67,600 per year, which means half of all Australians earn less than this;
- the majority of Australians (44.1%) fell in the $45,001 to 120,000 tax bracket;
- only 5% of the population earned more than $180,000 but paid 40.1% of net tax.
