Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with salary and work

What metrics are sales professionals guided by?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 08:27:00 -0800

What metrics are sales professionals guided by? Working with my sales manager to help redefine how inside and outside salespeople should be compensated and reviewed.

Everything from leadership to new accounts to call metrics to closed business... how does your business (or your competitors) judge the success of your sales force?

[Also, if you have any articles of interest or website recommendations, it would be just as valuable.]

Do I apply for a lower-level position?

NotSoSimple — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:02:28 -0800

Hate my boss, like my job. Local county notified me of two positions available I previously was interested in. Do I go? Complication: Child on the way. Have been at this job for just over 5 months. Job title is 'Systems Administrator' but it is a hybrid as I am the only IT guy for 3 locations and 75% of the work force. Great experience, great job, but I hate my boss. I was notified that the county has two positions open that I previously applied for but did not follow through due to my current position. They are entry level (Possibly boring?) but the starting pay is more than I make now. Currently at $40k/Year, and the new positions start at $42k and $44k. I hate having to be the new guy, and I am afraid I am suffering from 'The grass is greener'. I would also be back on the bottom and have to work my way up which is a bummer. Current company has potential of great growth (We are hiring ~10 per month and no stopping in site) but my management is failing on promises of increased IT staffing, comp time, etc.

Complication: We are expecting our first child in December and I am paranoid something will happen and I will not be able to provide financially. My wife also works at the same company as I (Different job title and department) but is a newer employee so no paid maternity leave, and is hourly.

Do I try out for the County jobs? I used to do Search and Rescue and LOVED the interaction with local law enforcement/government. I would be more receptive to staying at my current place if I was offered more money, but that dosnt look like it would happen. I DO NOT want to get fired by trying to have them match salary.

How would I go about asking for a salary increase in my yearly review?

decrescendo — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:39:46 -0800

How would I go about asking for a salary increase in my yearly review? I came in to this job as the #2 guy on a 2-person contract and then the #1 guy (my supervisor and project manager) quit. I'm now project manager and the only one on site. I feel like I should receive some sort of corresponding raise with this increase in responsibility. I've been working for a small employee-owned defense contractor since I graduated from college with an aerospace engineering degree in May of 2007. I worked in a different area of the country with this same company until I decided that I wanted to move to DC. I told my company I was going to look for a job in DC and they surprisingly ended up offering me a position in DC that I considered to be out of my league at the time. This position made me the "2nd string guy" out of 2 guys working on-site at a very large, high-visibility Department of Defense program office. I'm honestly in a little over my head due to the scale of this program and the type of working I'm doing but I feel like I'm doing a great job given my age and experience.

The old #1 guy on this project (my supervisor and the project manager) was a retired Marine Corp officer who was old enough to be my dad. He ended up leaving 6 months after I started working there, leaving me to be the only person on our contract in this program office. I did not feel like I knew enough at the time to be project manager but I feel like I've been doing a great job. My company's CEO often tells me how great of a job I'm doing given my age. He's apparently pleasantly surprised.

I had to fight for a salary increase when I came to this job. It sort of bothered me that my company thought I'd be able to get by in this part of the country on the salary I had when I was living in the middle of nowhere. I get the impression my company is very stingy about salary increases.

Now that I've been automatically moved up to project manager on our contract here, I feel like there should be some sort of salary increase since my responsibilities have most definitely increased. I have a yearly review coming up in early July and I want to attempt to ask for a raise. I feel that I deserve one not only due to my performance, but also by my move up to the project manager slot.

Not only am I not totally sure how to approach this, but I wish I had some sort of salary data available to me for reference. I really have no idea where I stand salary-wise. I know there are websites that are used to compare salaries, but I don't feel like this job will be one easily found online.

Do any of you have any recommendations on how to approach this? I'd really appreciate it. I've found some sites about this subject that are listed below, but I'd really like to hear some feedback directly tailored to my issue. Thanks!

Pages I've found so far:
Lifehacker
Lifehack
Lifehacker
Lifehacker
Get Rich Slowly

Bookselling salary guide?

Miko — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 11:14:45 -0800

I'm looking for salary guidelines for a job outside my field that I'm interested in -- coordinating events and marketing for an indie bookstore. So I just had some conversations with the owner of an independent bookstore. They're looking for someone to manage events and marketing. The goal is to take the bookstore from its current, basic approach to the newer model of community engagement, frequent instore events, partnerships, big author events, etc. The job would involve the event planning, working with publishers, marketing, managing a presence on social networks, etc. It will also involve serving as the assistant manager, the second of two fulltime staff in the store. About half the time would go to the marketing and events, the other half to bookselling and management tasks. I wouldn't do hiring or payroll.

The store is in an affluent Northeastern college town. The goal is revenue growth through increased event sales, and increased overall sales from newly-built customer loyalty. So there are some success measures that can be built into this job.

It's a newly created job; I would largely define what directions it develops in. I have all the required skills.

We're at the stage where I need to communicate my salary requirements to them. I'm coming from the world of nonprofit management, so it's not like I'm expecting hundreds of thousands; I already work for modest wages. But I'm afraid of both lowballing them, and coming in way too high, and I can't find any references. There's a baseline I need to make, but if I can beat it by a lot, I will definitely try. Does anyone have any idea what a job like this could command?

Asking for unpaid furlough versus a salary cut

ml98tu — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 05:31:20 -0800

I am thinking of asking for a furlough rather than just accepting an impending salary cut. Help me do this successfully! My company is planning furloughs and salary cuts, as well as other measures. I am fairly certain my salary will be cut by 10-20% but that I will not be furloughed. But from what I can see, furloughing looks like a better deal when we're talking about a 20% cut or more (i.e. one day a week). Is this thinking misguided? My workload will be 50%-100% higher in the coming months, so my chances of getting things done are even slimmer if I am on unpaid furlough, but I would rather work 80% for 80% pay and use the time to find another position, etc. How can I attempt to negotiate my way into a temporary furlough rather than a regular salary cut?

How do I best arm myself for an upcoming salary/bonus review in this economic climate?

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:46:18 -0800

How do I best arm myself for an upcoming salary/bonus review in this economic climate? I guess I'm what you might call "upper-management" at a small tech company. Like many others, our company is looking to cut costs and we will likely have a few layoffs later this month. I, and others, have already been informed that any raise in our base salary is off the table for now. However it has also been noted that pre-existing bonus clauses (such as the one I have) are still available.

So the thing is, for the last year I have been as busy as ever (actually more so), mainly because I have a skillset that only a few others have, and as a result I've been extremely busy and IMO was a huge part of helping to land a contract with a Fortune 10 company that was worth a lot of money for the company.

So, my bonus isn't particularly huge by any standards, it's capped at $5k. However, I know from past experience that my bosses treat all of these situations as bargaining sessions. So last year I walked out of the review with a $3k bonus. However, this year, based on the revenue I feel I helped bring in, plus other criteria such as hitting or beating project deadlines, I feel I deserve the entire bonus.(Especially since there will be no change in my base salary).

So I need strategies for this upcoming session. There have already been comments such as "Well, we're all lucky we even have jobs" and other signs that this will not go my way. In addition to this not quite being rooted in reality, I have realized my bonus structure is not based on objective facts, but is incredibly subjective. This was a mistake on my part when I arranged the terms of my employment, however this is my situation.

What can I do with BA in communications?

AZNsupermarket — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 13:17:41 -0800

Hi, I'm sophomore college student thinking about majoring in communications. When I get out of college what can I expect when I graduate? What kind of jobs will be open? What kind of demand can I expect? What kind of salary can I expect? Should I think about going on after college for some sort of further education?

What should I expect at an annual review?

Anonymous — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 06:42:21 -0800

My first annual review is coming up at my first real job. What do I expect, especially regarding discussion about pay/raises? I am an internal tech support guy (with a few other tech-related responsibilities) for a medium-sized business. This is my first "real" job. (I've only worked in huge chain retail and restaurants and whatnot before this.) My very first annual review is coming up in a couple of weeks.

Seeing as this is my first annual review in any job, I just want to mainly know what to expect. What kind of things are we going to talk about? What will they say? What should I say? Most importantly, what about a raise or discussion over compensation? What is a standard raise, and do I have any negotiation power?

I really like my job, and my benefits are great, but I feel like my base compensation is not quite what it should be. I've done a bit of poking around on salary websites and have talked to a couple people in my field, and from what I've seen it looks like I'm getting paid probably about $6000 less per year than I "should" be. I think part of this is that, again, this was my first real job. The second part is that I'm relatively young for this job. Both of these things were made clear when I got hired as reasons I was somewhat "on probation," if that makes sense.

I have a really good relationship with my direct manager and the rest of the chain of command, and I don't want to spoil this by being greedy or seeming ungrateful. So what can I expect, and what can I do to best prepare?

What do you do when you know you're #2 ?

Anonymous — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 17:52:42 -0800

I was just offered a job I was turned down for last month. How do I best handle the conversation? I've been job-hunting in a tight market and the most promising interview I've recently had resulted in an email along the lines of "your skill set is impressive but does not match our needs closely enough." I was disappointed because I thought the director and I had a good conversation and that my background met and even exceeded their needs. I didn't follow up to find out why I wasn't chosen.

Now it's a month later and I've just listened to a voicemail asking me to come in for a conversation because their first pick bailed "due to unforeseen circumstances" and as their number 2 pick, they want to see if I'm still interested. I've never been in this position before. What I want to know is:

1. Is it standard to ask just what those unforeseen circumstances were that took out pick #1?
2. How should this affect salary negotiations if I decide to take the job, or should it? (Again, this is a NPO -- I've never worked for one and I'm not even sure how to negotiate in this instance.)
3. Does being the #2 choice generally poison the well as far as relationship, progress, etc? This is a tiny office, and I'd be working closely with this person, so we'll need to have a very solid working relationship.

I'm especially eager to hear from people who have been in this position before or who have a lot of professional NPO or HR/hiring experience. Thanks for your help.

How much do PHP developers in NYC get paid?

defreckled — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:26:43 -0800

What's the going rate for a PHP developer in NYC? I'm not actually defreckled but am borrowing this account.

I work as a PHP developer in NYC with a couple of years experience. A contract agency wants to pay me $50/hour on a contract (1099) basis and my friends think I'm being ripped off. What is the going rate for developers in this area? How much do people get paid full time?

How to handle salary discussions before you have a job offer?

Anonymous — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:50:34 -0800

Help with salary negotiations? The standard wisdom -- which I've been trying to follow -- is that you aren’t supposed to talk about salary until after you get a job offer. But the organization began talking about it when they called to schedule the first interview. Suggestions? I applied for a job. They required a salary history. I sent mine, stating that I make, let’s say, $60k (the details are changed here; it’s less than that). An assistant called, saying they wanted to schedule an interview with me, “but [boss] wanted to flag the fact that the salary for this position is in the mid-40s. Would you still be interested?” I paused (a bit surprised, really) and said something noncommittal, like “it would certainly be worth us having more discussion about the position.”

Next, I had a phone interview with the supervisor. The discussion had very few questions about my qualifications (one question). The call’s purpose seemed to be to explain the position and allow me to ask questions. She brought up the salary, and said that they have “authorization” to offer up to $48k, what did I think? I said something like “I would want to consider the salary in light of the full package, including benefits and the opportunities for professional growth.” She explained the benefits package (including a matching donation to a retirement account, which I admitted would close some of the gap).

The job offers a lot of opportunity for professional growth; I'd be really passionate about the work; they’re a great organization; and I could still live on the lower salary (though my ability to save would go way down). If offered the job, I would like to take it. But a 20% salary cut is still hard to take. It’s a much tougher decision than it would be if they could close that gap a bit more.

How should I handle this? Should I start to openly admit that it would be a tough decision for me at their current budget? Should I continue trying to wait until they actually offer me the job (or not)? I’d rather discuss salary once we've decided if I'd be a good fit for the job. But if so, how do I field the question? I think they may have the impression I would consider taking the job at the current salary, because I’ve typically changed the subject to how I’d be very excited to contribute to the organization. I don’t want them to think I’m agreeing to it and then seem to change my mind later. Since they keep trying to get me to say that salary is okay, they may not have much flexibility, but they must have some, right?

How would you handle this?

Why does her colleague get paid more?

hatmandu — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:52:35 -0800

My wife has a salary review coming up. A few months ago a colleague doing the same job as her revealed his wage was £1000 a year more, though he has been there for a shorter time. Should she mention this in her meeting? Background:
- she's been at the company for four years
- she's going to be taking maternity leave in the autumn, but wants to return to her job
- the other guy does the same job; he started after her and took a year out, negotiating the current deal on his return
- both are good at what they do and liked/appreciated for it
- he's a good negotiator; she is not confident with that sort of thing

Is it sexism in the workplace? Is it just 'you get what you ask for'? And how should she approach asking for it...?

(I anticipate some people might say: 'Are you sure she's as good at the job, aren't you biased?' Let's assume for the sake of argument she is: the key thing is to help her negotiate upward!)

Salary negotiation: Can I ask my employer-to-be to match a counter-offer from my current employer?

PlusDistance — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 16:52:41 -0800

I've accepted a new job and I'm giving notice tomorrow. I may have low-balled myself, salary-wise. If my current employer counter-offers, can I ask my new employer to match? Just agreed to take a new job. It's an exciting opportunity at well-regarded company, but they're a relatively small operation, and people who worked there told me they were "downright cheap" when it came to salary. So when the recruiter asked me what I was looking for, I made an initial offer that was less than I would have asked for elsewhere (but more than I thought they'd give me). I expected them to counter, but instead they called back and gave me exactly what I asked! (The recruiter said, "Yes, that's pretty much what [executive I interviewed with] was thinking.") Now I wonder if I've low-balled myself.

Tomorrow morning I expect to get the offer letter, and then I'll give notice. My current employer might counter offer on salary.

Two questions: Would I be jeopardizing my new gig if I went back and asked them to match the new offer? And if not, how can I phrase it so it doesn't sound (or sounds less like) I'm simply shaking them down?

Can my employer paid everyone else overtime but me?

boognish — Mon, 26 May 2008 20:11:03 -0800

Everyone in my department at work (desktop publishing) is paid overtime except me (I'm salaried) and we all have the same job title and responsibilities. Is this legal? I used to be hourly but then was promoted to a salaried position about a year ago. Then around the beginning of 2008, my position was eliminated and I was placed back into my old department and given the same position as everyone else but I was never switched back to hourly. Then we got busy and I worked a lot of "overtime" that I never got paid for. Do I have to be paid hourly like everyone else since we all have the same position, and if so, am I entitled to the overtime money I should have received?

How can I squeeze blood from a rotten turnip?

reenum — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:28:29 -0800

My shady ex-boss hasn't paid me what I am owed. What to do? I worked for an attorney from December 2004 until May 2005. It was my first job out of law school and I was naive. The attorney and I had an agreement that I would get a small base salary and a percentage of any case settlements that came in.

May rolled around and the firm wasn't doing well financially. So, I left to pursue other opportunities. Prior to leaving, I did sign an agreement with my boss to get paid on the cases I had worked on.

Suffice it to say, I get checks here and there, but not before I harrass my ex-boss and hound him with calls and e-mails.

Is there any recourse I have besides suing him for what he owes me? This all occurred in Missouri and the statute of limitations on written contracts is fast approaching.

Work in on state, get hosed in two.

littlerobothead — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:06:31 -0800

TaxFilter: I work in VA and live in NC. My state taxes are already a nightmare... I have a dev job in metro Virginia (Norfolk), but we live in North Carolina because it's so much cheaper. We've just discovered that apparently my company hasn't been taking any state taxes out of my salary, and NC is asking for its penance.

Friends had told me I could file in VA, get a refund, and pay NC with it; that was before we found out I haven't had any deductions taken. We're giving up and taking everything to an account, but before we do does anyone have any idea what I'm in for? To top it all off, this is the first year we're filing jointly and my poor wife is bracing for impact.

Isn't your employer required to deduct something for taxes for the state? I mean, obviously your mileage may vary, but this is Virginia we're talking about; I'm surprised they don't tax the air you breathe here. It seems they'd be pretty gung-ho about employers covering taxes.

Negotiate a raise without issuing an ultimatum?

OmieWise — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 07:06:10 -0800

How does one best go about negotiating a raise when one is not inclined to use resigning as a negotiating tool? I've been doing my present job, 75% administrative/25% clinical, for a little over a year. When I was hired (promoted, really, to Program Manager) there was a full time Medical Director for my program who had a lot of experience and provided a lot of support. Soon after I started that person resigned and a new Medical Director started who works less than half time. While she is very good at her job, there are inevitably more things that I have to deal with as a result of being the only administrative person at the clinic three days per week. My current Medical Director is now starting a large research project that will keep her from the clinic for all but maybe a half day per week. There is plenty of medical support for patients and other clinicians, but there will be even more day to day stuff for me to field.

I asked for a raise a few months ago and was told (by the Clinic Director, but through my Medical Director) that since my job description has not changed, I was not really eligible for a substantial raise. (I believe HR was consulted about this, I work for a VERY large employer.) While it is technically true that my job description has not changed, and will not change, my job has changed and will change more. I'm not sure how to describe this substantial change.

It may or may not be relevant that I know the previous person in my position was paid substantially more. She had much more experience, so that seemed reasonable, but it also just so happened that the employer I work for was restructuring their HR just as I was offered my job, and I suspect that my position was downgraded in that adjustment.

So, the biggest problem with my negotiating position is that I like my job a lot. It's in a field that I really want to work in, it has a nice mix of tasks, the field I work in has a lot of flaky players but my employer is not one of them, and I'd like to stay. Additionally, I'm a social worker, and the money I make is actually pretty good for that field, and in order to match it elsewhere I would have to most likely search for a job substantially more administrative and, hence, boring to me.

I'd love thoughts and suggestions about how to make a strong case, and how to represent the non-technical change in my job, when I ask for a raise. I'm particularly concerned that I figure out a way to suggest how serious I am without having to threaten to leave my position. I'm not worried about making the case of me as a good employee, because I am and I'm comfortable saying so.

Average salary for 27 year old college grad.

blueplasticfish — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 12:08:33 -0800

What is the average salary for a 27 year old college graduate? I know there are a lot of variables here (based on experience, skills, etc.), but I am just looking for some sort of range based on what you've heard, read, researched, or experienced.

Overtime pay versus comp time

Optimus Chyme — Tue, 01 May 2007 06:16:25 -0800

What are the rules, if any, governing overtime pay versus comp time? Yesterday afternoon, my employer told all employees that there would be no more overtime pay, only comp time. Neither I nor anyone else on my team is salaried.

I live in Arizona and as far as I can tell, Arizona does not have an overtime law, so we should be covered under federal law. But I can't find any explanations of overtime pay versus comp time here.

So, my questions are pretty simple:

1) Is it legal to give employees comp time in lieu of overtime?

2) Would that comp time be accrued like overtime pay, that is, one and a half hours for every hour worked over 40?

3) If it is not legal, what are the specific laws and penalties covering it?

Thanks!

Salary + Benefits

blim8183 — Mon, 09 Oct 2006 18:31:40 -0800

I currently make $800/week ($41,600/year) as a freelancer where I work. I've worked there for over a year and am now being offered a chance to work there fulltime with benefits. The benefits package is very generous but when it came time to discuss salary, they offered me $36,000/year, the rationale being that the benefits more than make up for the lower pay. However, benefits don't pay the rent or buy me food so I said no and we've begun the negotiation process. This is my first job out of college and frankly, I expected to be paid more than I was currently making as a freelancer so I was quite shocked when they made the offer. Is it normal for something like this to happen? Is it unreasonable for me to expect to get paid the same amount while also getting benefits?

How much to move

Deep Dish — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 18:50:00 -0800

I am interviewing for a new job shortly. I am trying to come up with a dollar figure for how much I should ask for. I will be changing cities, working a fairly similar job to the one I am in now, and moving to a city where the housing costs are slightly higher. How do I figure out how much I need to make the move? Is a calculator available to help with this decision? I am looking for raw numbers here, I will factor in social costs later. I own a small house, and my brother has agreed to assume the mortgage or rent the place. I would likely buy a house worth about 10K more than the one I live in now. I expect to incur some expenses in the transfer here but I expect worse case scenario is 2K.

My moving expenses would be fairly small. I don't own much. Two half-tonne loads going about 225KM should cover those expenses. Let's say maximum $500.

I earn right now somewhere around 33K-35K which is factoring in some profit sharing money, overtime and a bit of stock. I pay for most of my own benefits. I can usually expect a 3% raise every year. The stock I hold is the only retirement plan, and it has lost money recently and as far as I know has never paid a dividend. The profit sharing doesn't happen if the company loses money.

The new organization will pay more at least 37K a year, and I will probably seek 40-42K. The workweek is a half an hour a week shorter on average - I get every second Friday off. The benefit plan is cheaper and less comprehensive - which is fine because I don't use it much (knock on wood) except for glasses and drugs to deal with minor ailments from time to time (this year about $60 to me). I live in Canada so basic medical care is socialized. The pension plan is exceptional - if I stay there 20 years I probably retire a millionaire, and the workplace is unionized. Raises tend to come with every collective agreement. 3% is probably average. The Union dues are pretty stiff but tax deductible.

Taxes, auto insurance etc should all be the same.

How do I negotiate for a better deal?

Anonymous — Sat, 06 Aug 2005 21:33:10 -0800

I asked for too little during the job interview. How do I push for more if I get an offer? I work in a creative industry where people earn more prestige and more money by moving to bigger employers, and this sometimes requires big moves.

I'm one of the top-two candidates for a job 3,000 miles from where I live right now.

I currently make US$27,000. They said they wouldn't accept candidates who did not include salary requirements in their letters, so I asked for $33,000. My potential-future-boss let it drop that the budgeted salary for the job is $36,500.

I'm pretty confident that if I get it, they'll offer me $36,500. How can I successfully negotiate for more money? I'd like to try for $38,000, for the fuzzy feeling I'd get if I found myself getting a 40-percent pay boost. At the very least I'd like $37,000. I will be supporting my significant other until he finds work, so more money will matter a great deal in the short run, less in the long run.

Also, I told them that I would be able to start 30 days after accepting an offer. Now that I consider the repurcussions of giving two weeks notice, taking one week to pack up everything I own here into a van, driving it across country over five days, and then only having two days to adjust to a different city and a different climate ... it doesn't seem like enough time. Any tips on negotiating for an extra week or two?

Work Philosophy

Hankins — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 10:58:12 -0800

Philosophy of Work – Let’s say you have the option of getting paid more for handling the same workload, or getting paid the same, but working fewer hours? [Contract renegotiation time inside.] It's contract evaluation time for a friend™ and he has been offered one of the following options: an increase in pay or less work for his current pay. Currently, he has to work 180 hours per month to remain salaried, which amounts to 18 10-hour shifts per month. In that light, he has been offered more money to work those same 180 hours, or the option to keep his current salary and only work 170 hours per month (which translates into 1 fewer day a month).

(Note: I'm more interested in the discussion of this topic and hearing others' perspectives as it relates to themselves instead of approaching this more selfishly as "What should he do!!??", but here is more qualifying information about the friend should anyone care to know more...)

10-hours a month relief doesn't look like much on paper, but in this friend's reality, it would make a noticeable difference. It's extremely fast-paced medical work (emergency room), which has shift work in rotations, rarely in consecutive time slots (one day will be 8PM-6AM, the next 3PM-1AM). Having the relief of one fewer day to work a month would be nice (not a huge difference, but noticeable). FWIW: this friend is currently burned out more than I've ever seen him over the past 8 years.

At the same time, this concludes the first year of gainful employment since he graduated from medical school last spring. Though there aren't any plans to leave the employer, a higher salary might give him more salary negotiation leverage if he moved elsewhere (though realistically, probably not). On top of all of this, most of his income is going to the mortgage of the house he bought this year. Having a little bit of extra money in his paycheck would definitely feel more rewarding every month.

And then... there's vacation. For next year, he will receive 4 additional days (12 total). If you factor in the 12 fewer days he'll have to work in Option A, that's like 16 fewer days he'll have to work total. But at the same time... more money.

Give/Take – how would you feel about the tradeoffs?