The Cast Metals Federation (CMF) has released headline results from its 2025 Wages & Salaries Survey, offering an up-to-date snapshot of pay trends across the UK castings industry.
Conducted annually, the survey benchmarks wages, salaries, absence and staff turnover across small, medium and large foundries, providing valuable insight to support members in workforce planning and competitiveness.
Cast Metals Federation chief executive Dr Pam Murrell FICME said: “The survey offers an important opportunity for CMF members to benchmark their pay structures against national averages and across foundries of different sizes.
“The insights help identify where adjustments may be needed to remain competitive in recruiting and retaining skilled people.”
Survey participation and scope
The survey covers sand, die-casting and investment foundries of varying sizes. The findings cover the 12-month period to September 2025, with results segmented by company size.
The broad dataset provides useful indicators of pay movement and employment trends across a broad spectrum of roles.
Pay trends and comparisons
Across the UK castings industry, average salaries increased by between 2% and 10%, depending on role and company size.
Overall salaries for foundry managers rose modestly, with small and large foundries reporting increases, while medium-sized companies saw a slight decline. There were also small decreases for health & safety and environmental manager roles, while clerical and administrative positions remained largely unchanged year on year.
Salaries for sales managers increased by approximately 3% overall, with the largest rises in medium and large companies, reflecting strong demand for commercially focused roles.
Salaries for metallurgists rose by almost 5%, with increases recorded across all company sizes. Among the most significant changes were for laboratory and testing roles, and production and methods engineers, with average salaries increasing by more than 10% compared with 2024.
This continues a trend of growth in specialist technical positions where recruitment remains competitive.
Overall, the 2025 results indicate a period of steady pay growth across most occupational groups, but with notable variation between company sizes and functions.
Absence and staff turnover
Absence and turnover continue to show wide variation between companies.
Average absence rates ranged from 6% in small foundries to 3% in large ones, with an overall mean of 2.8%.
Staff turnover varied significantly across our data set, from under 1% to 65%, averaging 20% across all foundries.
These figures suggest continuing challenges in recruitment and retention, particularly in smaller companies and specific technical roles.
Next steps and participation
The Federation encourages all members to take part in future surveys to strengthen the accuracy and value of the data for the sector as a whole. Participating members receive a full anonymised breakdown of the survey results to support their own benchmarking, HR and recruitment requirements.
“The more companies that participate, the more representative and informative the results become,” Dr Murrell added. “We are grateful to all those who contributed this year and encourage wider participation in 2026.”
