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"The climate is not as generous this year because there's so much uncertainty. Bonuses are generally down", says Simon Jenkins, HR director at quantity surveyor Gardiner & Theobald. But he adds: "It has become harder in the past couple of years to find good graduates, so we've had to pay them a bit more. There are fewer people going into university wanting to be QSs, so we're trying to expand our recruitment into schools."

Charles Johnston, senior partner with cost consultant MDA, reports similar problems, and says his firm has started recruiting maths and geography graduates.

Big pay rises for junior architects, interior designers, space planners and landscape architects 鈥�

One caveat with all the figures is that they only provide average salaries, so there are some highly paid individuals who don't show up. For example, consultants with experience and understanding of the mind-boggling intricacies of PFI contracts are in demand and thin on the ground, so they are receiving tempting offers from rival firms.

Johnston says there's a particular lack of quantity surveyors in their early 30s, and the same applies to engineers. This is according to Charles McBeath, a director of consulting engineer Whitby Bird & Partners, who blames the shortage on graduate recruitment cutbacks during the last recession. This time around, McBeath says, the slowdown isn't hitting most of the country too hard: "The regions are quite busy, but it's easy to find good people in London."

The QS partner鈥檚 pay is down an average of 1.4% 鈥� this is the second-biggest drop in any category

In fact, the corporate downturn is making it easier for firms like Whitby Bird to persuade engineering graduates to resist the lure of the City and stick to their chosen profession. McBeath says: "People are becoming much more aware that, as an engineer, you are not badly rewarded. City pay is very hard to compete with, and it was one of the reasons why it was hard for us to recruit graduates. But now, there will be the odd superlative candidate who decides to stick to engineering 鈥� which, of course, is what you want."

John Assael, managing director of Assael Architecture, is generous about the pay rises junior architects have received. He says: "I think it's fantastic that students and young architects are forcing employers to pay them properly." He proudly states that nobody in his central London practice is paid less than 拢20,000 per year, and some are paid 拢100,000. He says: "We recently lost out to an architect who bid half as much as we did for a 拢30m residential project in Docklands 鈥� even though we were bidding 20% less than standard fees. I bet that architect earns 拢20,000 and pays his students 拢10,000."