These professionals earn more than a minister and almost no one knows it

Living like a priest. Or earning like a minister. Perhaps at some point these were the aspirations of many Spaniards. But reality has changed and, today, the remuneration of a minister is within reach of many professionals. Yes, many. Even profiles such as a specialized plumber or an industrial electrician earn more money than the occupants of the blue chairs in the Congress of Deputies.

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But let’s start at the beginning: what is the salary of Spanish ministers? According to the Transparency Portal, the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, with 102,616 euros, was the highest-paid minister in 2025. Unlike Óscar Puente, head of Transport, who received 77,831 euros. They are the extremes of a total of 22 leaders, of whom 16 receive between 84,650 and 90,527 euros annually. A remuneration that José Ignacio Jiménez, president of the leadership expert company Talengo, finds extremely low: “The vast majority of members of the management committee of a medium-sized company in Spain earn more than a minister,” he says. Something that Guido Stein, professor at IESE, agrees with, who believes that public service is poorly paid.

Although what is really relevant is not that executives earn more money than high-ranking politicians, but that now a large group of professionals without staff under their charge can enjoy remunerations as juicy as those of executives. “Historically, hierarchy has been paid a lot and that is breaking. The scarcity of talent is giving value to some professions that break that axiom,” Jiménez notes. And Eva de Grado, director of LHH, from the Adecco Group, agrees: “The labor market rewards hierarchy less than before and more expert knowledge. It is a trend change at a time when new professions are emerging.”

“More and more profiles without responsibility over people are appearing whose salary can exceed that of executives and ministers. It is an evolution closely linked to the scarcity of talent and risk management in companies,” says Carolina González, general director of Selection Areas at Manpower. Technical experts achieve higher remunerations due to the benefits they bring to the bottom line of the organizations that hire them.

González maintains that these professionals are characterized by possessing great technical knowledge and needing constant learning. In addition, they are hardly replaceable. And she points out five areas where the non-executive profiles with the highest salaries are found: digital economy, risk management and large projects, knowledge professionals, those who generate business directly, and hyper-specialized and scarce trades.

The cybersecurity architect has become a figure for which companies in any sector compete, as they serve all and it is a very rare profile. The demand is very high, De Grado notes, so it is not surprising that they earn more than 100,000 euros annually, she assures. “Cybersecurity has moved to a strategic level in companies, so they can earn up to 130,000 euros,” supports the Manpower executive. Something similar happens with artificial intelligence (AI) engineers. High specialization and scarcity become a winning duo. “Their salaries start from 70,000 or 75,000 euros with little experience, but from now until next year, companies will compete for them with salaries above 100,000 euros,” De Grado predicts. “They are professionals who accelerate the company’s profitability and, moreover, are very difficult to replace,” Jiménez maintains. The two experts also mention the data engineer as another of the best paid in the technology area.

Another professional who earns more than a minister and goes quite unnoticed is the raw materials buyer, whether trader or employee of industrial companies, where their performance directly impacts the bottom line, according to the LHH executive, who considers that their remuneration until now was not high, but with the energy crisis today exceeds 90,000 euros annually. In the case of the trader, the president of Talengo points out, they can earn between 150,000 and 200,000 euros.

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Up to one million euros

Salaries within reach of few are traditionally common in investment banking and private banking. “It is a classic, a sector that pays very well from the start, with remunerations for the first year exceeding 50,000 euros and, when seniority is acquired, they can be above half a million and even one million euros,” Jiménez describes. They are also subject to very high variable salaries, which can exceed 30% of the salary package.

Lawyers specializing in AI or mergers and acquisitions, pilots, air traffic controllers, quality experts in the pharmaceutical and biotechnological sector, surgeons, anesthetists or private radiologists, property registrars, key account salespeople, and civil or mining engineers are other professionals who manage legal, financial, or operational risks with a high level of responsibility and very high salaries, according to Carolina González. It is not uncommon for any of them to exceed 90,000 or 100,000 euros, and sometimes much more, according to the experts consulted.

And we must not forget trades. For González, it is easy for specialized plumbers, industrial electricians, heavy machinery operators, or welders in complex works to far exceed the salaries received by a minister. It is the law of supply and demand.