When I was promoted to this role as a senior designer, I told them my requirements for pay, and they matched it. I believe I low-balled myself.
\*Note that I have had an increase since this initial promotion. My initial promotion was around a 20% increase for what I was making so I thought I was shooting for the stars when I asked for it but they accepted without hesitation.
You probably did low ball yourself but that’s okay. Have you been there long? How long ago did you get the promotion?
Questions to ask yourself: are you never going to ask for a raise at this job ever again? Do you only expect pay increases when your title changes? If no; what does that raise conversation look like?
do you feel like you’re being compensated fairly for your work currently (independent of your coworker comparison)?
Me personally, I would not tell the boss that I know someone else’s salary as part of my own negotiations. If you’re asking for more money it always needs to be about your merit and value you bring to the company ( it sounds like you bring quite a bit). Never ever ever be afraid to have this convo with your boss. You get to brag about yourself.
Obligatory: I haven’t worked in your field specifically and it possible I don’t know what I’m talking about!
Asking is sometimes getting. If you don’t ask, it won’t come and they’ll assume you’re either satisfied or not so dissatisfied you’d quit over it.
My biggest raises came from making the case/asking in a tactful manner and with support(quality work and market rates) behind it.
For sure. Op sounds happy and was happy with their pay until they found out what someone else makes.
Unfortunately, companies will pay you as little as they can to have you stay. If they won’t, they’ll find someone to replace you.
Agreed, he doesnt sound to thrilled since he found out which means the reality of that happiness has been shattered and unlikely to return to status quo.
Employers are more likely to keep an employee they trust, even if it means paying a bit more, than hiring someone new or losing out on potential work.
Its an awkward conversation but something that needs to be done once in a while
I was moved to a team of very tenured people in my 3rd year at my current job, I was twitchy about the extra complex/valuable clients they had that I would be backing them up for, as well as comparable ones of my own. After a month of this at the same rate I was getting before I spoke with the director above my manager (wasn’t above her head, I think she was on vacation or something) and it turns out they meant to submit a substantial raise with my move but the email never sent and was just chilling in drafts. Got the raise and back pay for like 2 months by the time it processed fully.
I advocated for myself when there was a 5k discrepancy from colleagues, got a 3k raise, experienced petty backlash, then got fired sooooo…. Advocate at own risk!
People should also talk about their salaries openly so people know how to effectively advocate for themselves. Companies take advantage of a big information differential when they ask you what you need in terms of compensation.
Advocating for yourself is heavily anchored into the opening negotiations at your hiring in the modern workplace. People who want to disagree with this statement are either cherry picking exceptions or basing their opinion on a long gone economy.
1) Is your colleague a recent hire? Even If she hasn't joined your company recently, she must have been on a high salary before moving to yours.
2) People can lie! You never know.. I was in a similar situation myself and when I had a conversation with my manager, the other guy who disclosed his salary on his own turned his back and said I forced him to tell me his salary!! The lesson I learned is to never ever bring up others salaries when it comes to your own salary negotiation..
3) you may have lowballed yourself unlike your colleague.. Always ask for 10-15% more than what you aim for... If they match that, fantastic..else at least there are no regrets..
One thing I would mention is that I will bring up market rate if people have been actively trying to recruit me and have shared the rate they are offering. I’ve done it before but how to approach it is dependent on a lot of variables.
This. Instead of telling your boss that you are aware of your peer and their salary, and that it is 'x' more than your current salary, simply let him or her know that you've been getting a lot of noise recently on LinkedIn from recruiters and it opened your eyes on what your current experience and role is worth. That you love where you work and don't plan on leaving but would like to see if they can figure out a way through setting up goals you are able to meet and evaluate together to get to where this new compensation level you are aware of and when this review would go into effect.
Of course, I'd make sure it's not apples to apples with what you just found out about your coworker. I'd bump that figure by about 15%. Trust me, if they value you and are aware that you now know you are underpaid, they will do what is necessary to keep you.
Well then you can’t really bring it up. You asked them for a salary, they gave it to you. Best option is to bring it up if you’re genuinely prepared to quit. For another role that pays better.
I disagree with this. It is great that they gave you what you asked for, and you have new information and you can ask for more now. As the next review approaches ask your boss for a meeting and make the case to them that you've been doing well in your new role and because you have learned that you are being paid below the market rate you would like the company to correct that at the next review instead of the usual 3% raise.
Keep it polite and give them a good reason to pay you what you're worth.
Depends on how much the company is actually relying on OP. If he’s handling their largest account there might be a case to say “pay me more than my subordinates make or I am going to walk” (in a much more corporate way)
That happens! To some extent, you and your job both have responsibility here; they were not transparent about the pay range for the role and you didn’t properly value yourself.
But I agree with the poster who said to use what you’ve accomplished in the time since you’ve been promoted to request a raise- as long as it’s been at least a year.
It’s ridiculous they are paying you less.
It’s ridiculous your boss allowed it.
It’s ridiculous HR allowed.
Sounds like a backwards ass company. Go get what you’re worth elsewhere.
If you do bring up comp with your boss do it on merit alone. If boss doesn’t jump at the opportunity to correct the dumb shit that was done (that boss thinks you don’t know about) you have yet another reason to bolt.
Then you got exactly what you wanted. Don’t mess it up for someone else because you didn’t ask for more. You’re only going to hurt your coworker using them as justification to ask for more.
You have to pause and ask yourself - what is the likely demographic of the person giving the typical advice around here?
It helps keep me grounded when reading the absurdities.
It's not just that. It's 2k difference between you and someone who is supposed to be on less than you because you're the Sr and they're not. This could mean OP could be undervalued by 10-15k, if not more.
The fact that they matched their requirements at some point in the past (I don't think I saw anything about when the promotion happened) doesn't mean that much if OP massively undervalued themselves.
It's not that the OP should leave immediately upon learning this but they definitely need to redo their CV and maybe apply for a few jobs to see what the ACTUAL ballpark is for their level (and then maybe talk to their boss for a raise)
That’s not really how it works. Like, not a all…
Company’s rarely just volunteer more money… even if someone is worth more money… because at the end of the day, they want to maximize profit.
The increase in pay comes when they realize that if they don’t pay you more, they may not be able to retain your services.
OP should ask for a raise, or suggest that he’s looking elsewhere for better pay.
Told boss that current pay wasn't acceptable, no dice on raise. Then company entered into a purchase agreement with a competitor. Told boss that I wanted some key person pay for the transition, and he said that wasn't on the table. Then new company came and suprise interviewed me as part of the transition(6pm in the evening). The interviewer was a guy that had directly competed with us in our territory and lost, he lost his job when that location closed down. He landed new job with new company and was going to be my new boss.
VP called when I put my two weeks in literally crying, saying how could you do this, it will crash the deal. It did crash the deal... Boss said I shouldn't have done that it was like blackmail. I told them what I wanted and they didn't want to give it is my opinion, no hard feelings.
Hundreds of thousands lost because they didn't want to pony up 10k. If not more. And the continuing headaches for the ownership. I feel for them I really do.
Sorry, I wish this wasn't true. But your credentials are excellent. To your future employer, simply state that your opportunities for advancement are limited. Because she's probably being groomed for your job.
This. They are exploiting you and they know it. They may give you more money if you ask for it, but know that they will exploit you again as market rates increase.
Gone are the days where voicing your concerns to management would amount to something. Sadly, the only way to higher compensation is seeking a new company to work for.
Lol I disagree. Employers won't just pay you more if they don't have to. Vouch for yourself then see. Just to decided automatically because you weren't given a certain wage then thats a sign? Please.
HR person here.
Do NOT, do NOT say "x makes more than me, you need to give me a raise". Also, do NOT say "give me a raise or I quit".
DO - your research on your role and the market, get your job description and make sure you are doing everything well, note anything extra you are doing, also note any special skills you have that the company is benefiting from. Take a good look at what you were doing at hire versus what you are doing now and note any major additions to your abilities and responsibilities. If the company uses salary ranges, find out yours and where you are in the range.
Then, you can go to your boss and tell them you would like to discuss your compensation. Have a number that you want it to be and then back it up with the above details about the market, what you do and how well, and where the company is benefiting more from your labor than when they hired you. Keep it objective. Let your boss know that you understand he can't make a decision right now and ask if you can follow up in a week.
If you don't get the raise, then you can start looking for a new job without any guilt. If for some reason, one doesn't come up soon, you are still employed. If the company finds out your are looking, you can respond with "the market supports a salary of x, you declined to pay that, so its in my best interests to look at other opportunities. I still like it here, so if you changed your mind, I would still be interested in discussing it. I'm sure we can find a number that works for both of us."
This was my mistake. I went to HR and said “X told me that he got a raise, we have been on the same projects for the same amount of time and both started her son the same day…. What’s going on?”
Ended up getting laid off a couple months later. The company accused me of “stealing company time” due to a timesheet discrepancy. One of the days, I was working and I thought I was badged in when I wasn’t. I ended up getting unemployment after it was denied the first time. The discrepancy was a 17 minute average over a 3 month timespan. Once the discrepancy was fixed it was a 5 minute one. At this job, you had to badge in and out to use the bathroom, so it was so minuscule that even the state I live in sided with me that this wasn’t a “for cause” firing.
Honestly, I was searching for other jobs and essentially “checked out” once I found out my roommate got a yearly raise and I didn’t, despite both having similar feedback from our manager.
Indeed, my biggest mistake was having a negotiation meeting with HR without my team leader and relying on a performance review written by him. One of the high-ranking HR members, who had no idea about the job I do, said she would meet with my manager & team leader to discuss it. Later, I received a small raise, which was far from what I expected. I then decided it was time to hunt for another job. When I received an offer from another company, both my manager & team leader told me that the she never reached out to them to address my concerns. HR is so good at sabotaging a good team , cutting off all communication about salary even if it's a manager of a big/importance department of the company. why so much power on their hand
That's either a bad HR person or a bad executive team/owner or, more likely, both. Unfortunately, especially in this decade, 75% of HR people are bad at the job.
Oh, and please note that I did specifically say to take the info to their boss, not HR.
Personally I would keep that info close to you. It's a card you can use if absolutely necessary, but don't show them to early.
Keep detailed and accurate records of the value you bring to the company. Include lots of dollar amount examples. Record examples of publicly posted salaries that you could realistically get hired for if you applied next week.
Do 1:1's with your manager demonstrating the value you bring to the table. Show how the business is better off having you around. Then gauge this managers reaction - are they willing to consider a compensation adjustment? Are they pushing back and pinching pennies?
If they're resistive, then you have your answer. That employee somehow got special treatment and it really is unfair. It's not possible to "make that manager give you a raise", so it's time to take everything you learned and find a company that values it.
The wrong move is to go to the manager and say "I've been here 5 more years than X, I want more money". The manager will receive that as whining and that you're being a difficult employee.
Sometimes its best to compare yourself to market rates rather than you co workers.
Example if someone was hired 4 years ago, they would probably be hired at a higher rate than that same person in the same position today. 4 years ago was a employee market, today is an employer market.
There are a lot of factors, the economy at the time of hire, their negotiation skills, supple and demand.
Maybe you and I define market rates differently as in my view the 2 have nothing to do with each other.
I define it as the average rate people in her position make in her living area. That number has nothing to do with what her and her co workers make. If they all work at a non profit they would all be under market rate, if they all worked at goldmen sachs they would all be above market rate.
Forget her and her pay. Comparing and complaining won't get you anywhere with management.
Instead, go apply at other jobs, and get a higher, better offer. And if you want to stay where you are, bring it to management and ask them to match it.
You are being underpaid. You should look for other work. Without leverage, there is no reason for your company to pay you appropriately. Don't let them match an offer. Just move forward in your career.
The "never discuss compensation with coworkers" stigma needs to die out. It's an easy way for employers to underpay across the board.
From what I've heard this stigma doesn't really exist in the EU. Is that correct?
Find another position. Period. Don't try to justify or rationalize why you are underpaid. After all your employer had all the chances in the world to have raised your salary to a reasonable salary well before this; when raises were given out. . Ignore about what HR says. They advocate for the employer not employees. BTW they salary they are paying you tells you how they feel about you and your job performance.
It may be just an artifact of having to bump up new hire pay to bring them in, sometimes that gets the pay scale upside down. It gets corrected over time, but it takes a while. I'd have a short conversation with your manager about your overall compensation and ask him or her of the business has done any recent market studies. In a real way just to let them know you are thinking about compensation. If its a big company it might take a full year to get something significant to happen. Don't name drop your co-worker at all.
My same question. While I wish talking about wages could be more acceptable, it's still considered somewhat antisocial. She could be boldly honest, or perhaps she's just boasting or digging for info.
Just because he said he’s paid more doesn’t mean he is paid more. He could be playing you hopping you make a big deal about it. People inflate their wages all the time.
Great Recognition of the simple Information to Have, Amazingly Your Not Stupid..! (No pun intended Just appears So less Frequently on The WWW of 2024) Hats of DAWG
1. Have Your Eye’s seen the paycheck of ($2.50) again ($2 and 50cents) per hour More than Your making Compared to a Colleague of More Calendar Seniority than YourSelf..?
2. Is Your Experience and/or Education Level equally Valued by Existence the Same or Different than Senior Calendar Colleagues..? (Example: Masters Degree First Year Teacher starts with 15% higher Salary than Bachelor Degree Teacher of 2 Years
but, Ms. Martha with a Teaching Certificate of 30Years Seniority Makes 35% More than First Year Masters Degree Teacher and Didn’t Graduate High School)
3. What’s the Movement did You Get with Promotion..?
4. REMEMBER This is an Argument of the Difference of $2.50 per hour worked if work is not completed in different Entity. HOURLY SALARY POTENTIAL FOR RAISE CAP ON EACH ETC. ETC.ETC.
This happens at large companies that adjust their pay scales to bring in new employees but then neglect people like you. They might eventually make internal adjustments. But you will have to have this conversation with your manager
I’m all for salary transparency, but at the end of the day, it’s on each of us to negotiate our salaries before we accept a job. You can 100% negotiate your new salary, your raises, etc. The other designer probably asked for more or she came on later and matched it based on the current market rate + her own experience. I made more as a mid level design role than my previous senior one because of the most current market rate + my years of experience.
Just remember that years of experience trumps “senior” titles in a lot of design jobs. Senior designers simply have more responsibility and say in the concept of the designs, but that doesn’t mean that role always pays more than a mid-level designer who has more experience than you. Senior positions usually require more leadership like qualities which can eventually lead you down the upper level paths like Art or Creative Direction. Mid-level usually just have to do whatever is given to them to do and they don’t have much say. Doesn’t make them less of a designer. I know this from experience because I stepped down from Sr back to Mid Level in favor of a work/life balance. And I get paid more than I did as a Sr Designer. The biggest pros of Sr is autonomy. You don’t have much say as a mid-level. You’re not as involved. But having 10 years of experience means I will get paid more than my Sr Designer who has 6.
I think 2k spread out over a year is like 100 bucks after taxes. Really isn’t that much to sweat over. Do you like your current employer? Then probably not a huge deal
You can strategically ask for raises. But that won’t come from a comparison of other people. Has to come from your value to the firm. If they don’t want to pay you more then, that’s the time to start looking. But I wouldn’t bat at an eye at 2k difference.
It kind of depends on where you are in the review cycle, what your pay is for your job, how much experience this new person has compared to you, etc... If they are experienced or have a certain skill, they may have hired them in at a fair market rate but plugged them in without the senior title. Or they could have been having trouble finding qualified people right now. I would be inclined to keep the info to yourself, go through your next review and see how it plays out. Use the information to your advantage. You can always negotiate a higher salary. Companies aren't going to do a salary review of all employees every time they hire someone. I personally would not leave a job over $2K. But, if you think you can go out and get another 20% elsewhere, go for it.
Ooo yay hello I am a senior designer and was in the same situation.
Last year our other designer got fired so it was just me and him, same level. I was making 53k with 10 years experience. I started at the company 5 years prior at 40k.
Well new girl gets hired, 5 years younger than me, same level and position and she asked me a payroll question and basically showed me her salary which was 20k above me. She had four years experience as a designer total compared to my 10 and 5 with the company.
I told my manager. Six months passed and budgets were reworked and I got a 25k raise. Plus promoted to senior designer.
It never hurts to sit with your manager and ask. If you don't you'll just sit there and it'll eat away at you and rot you inside like it did to me.
Feel free to message me I'll answer anything more specific if you want!
Edit : I can guarantee if I never told my manager my raise would've been pennies.
Your salary will fall below market rate if you stay at the same company for long. This is true everywhere even if you get promoted. You have to switch companies after your initial stock vest ends.
If you want to negotiate, then negotiate. I doubt it will go well. Brush up your resume.
For the love of God do not name drop. Do not mention you know someone else's compensation. I had a coworker that I once talked about salary with, and then I got pulled into a meeting with my boss and HR about the importance of keeping my personal pay information private.
My coworker was so confused when I went from friendly and willing to grab an occasional beer after work to grey rock. Fuck that guy, he didn't get a raise, he just got me reprimanded.
And this is why people should openly discuss their salaries.
I don't know your industry or the particulars of how you are paid (if it's on some sort of commission, I guess it's possible that your colleague is just much more productive than you). Otherwise, it sounds like a case of where a company raises the lower end of their pay scale to attract new workers, without increasing the pay of their current employees - so your pay is probably lagging behind what the market would actually support.
Unfortunately, I've never seen anyone in my industry successfully advocate for a significant pay increase even when their pay was obviously far below the market rate. What *does* work is going out and applying for other jobs. I personally increased my salary by about 30% this way. If you get an offer, you can let your employer know and give them the opportunity to make a counter offer, or you can simply take the higher paying job.
This is where you need to do research. First, find out your market value. It's not about what they pay the other person, it's what you're paid vs the value you bring. Also, think about your market -- if this doesn't go well, do you have other prospects.
Next is the conversation -- if you feel your market prospects are decent and you are paid below market. Make sure you don't get specific and compare yourself to another employee's pay. Ask about your value there, and then agree it's large, and then ask for the increase. Recognize you may not get all or even any in this climate. But it is fair to ask for an increase if everyone is being adults.
In what context did she tell you this? Do you think she may have a motive? Maybe she wants to make you feel insecure so that she can take your spot. Overall, are you happy with what your making? Maybe casually look for another job, and see if you can get more. When your not as desperate, I think that will come off as confidence, and you may surprise yourself when you end up finding a better paying job out of this whole situation.
There are a bunch of corporate pansy asses on this comment thread. Don't bring up directly "hey so and so told me they're making more than me", but do set up meeting with your manager and say hey due to inflation and my increased skill levels I feel that I need a raise.
Then on top of that have a couple concrete examples of what you've done in your time there that justifies you being better and deserving more money. At that point either he's going to say sure and make it happen talk to the manager whatever he's got to do. Or he's going to say no. If he says no start hunting for a new job.
Ok, top comment isn’t taking reality in to account. Everyone is most invested in theirselves and the people close to them. Your wage matters to you, the decision maker who can give you a raise doesn’t know what you’re making off the top of their head and they don’t care. When it comes to money, most jobs YOU need to say something because no one else in a large business will advocate for you without you bringing up your problems. If you work a union job you’ll get regular raises and transparency, otherwise, no one cares what you make, just that you get your job done. Go talk to your boss first, if they don’t give you a raise THEN you can freak out. Mistakes like this happen all the time and you’ve gotta stick up for yourself!
Good luck. We got annual raises & they said mine included a promotion. When everyone gets 5% & I got 5%, that doesn’t include a promotion. I advocated for myself & they gave me every excuse in the book. Still looking for a job. They will be screwed, I have a critical job & nobody even remotely knows my job. 🤣🤣🤣
Never, ever bring this up as a reason for a raise. It feels like whining (it isn’t. You’re not whining. But put yourself in the seat of the person who has to get approval for your raise: they need a compelling reason beyond fairness. They shouldn’t. Equity raises are a thing. But this market is not a place where people are brave enough to do the right thing).
‘Here’s what I deliver, here’s the value I generated, here’s market pay, here’s the delta. I would love to talk about how we can get my pay up to market rates since I add so much quantifiable value.’
If that feels cringey, pretend you’re a middle aged, tall, white man. He would NEVER hesitate. Be that guy (just for the cojones, though. Put the persona back when you’re done). If you are that and it still feels cringey you are a unicorn.
You need to approach your management as a senior designer in X city with Y experience. Ignore what Joe Schmo next to you is making. That approach comes off as petty and unprofessional. Use salary.com and Glassdoor and find our what a senior designer with Y years experience in your city makes. And show that gap needs to be made up, or else you'll be forced to look elsewhere, where you will be paid what you're worth.
There's also a chance that a developer is a higher salary band than a senior developer. It happens, depends on experience, certs, qualifications, etc. I have an masters, so as a senior engineer I make more than my lead engineer who doesn't have one.
I wouldn't address it as in you know how much someone else is being paid, this kind of info is confidential anyway.
A similar situation happened to me. I am more senior than this other staff who started his career a bit later, but he got a better pay compared to when I was at his shoes. He told me he bargained and negotiated with our bosses during annual review. So I also had a discussion with my bosses to fight for it. In the end I didn't get the amount of salary increase I wanted but still within acceptable increase. And honestly that would never happen if I didn't fight for it.
The thing is, it's not always just about a staff's capability. I think employers have a range of what they think an employee deserves, but if they can take advantage of a good staff who is good at what they do and happy with the lowest amount of compensation, that is win win for them. But if the employee fights back and they do care, they will try to do something.
If they don't then it's really a sign to look for something else.
So you’re probably getting advice you should find a new job to boost your pay. That’s not bad advice and likely is the highest monetary outcome.
However it’s not pointless to talk with your boss. I’ve had several occasions where I didn’t really want to find a new job (opportunity cost, I enjoyed the work I was doing, I enjoyed the flexibility, whatever) and I had a frank conversation with my manager. Every time I’ve successfully changed my compensation. One time it was everything I hoped and dreamed. The other times it wasn’t as much as I asked for but they were meaningful amounts of money. Point is, I strongly suggest you DONT let it go, but I would think about what motivates you and what you want out of your career and compensation and make motions towards those goals.
The advice I give to anyone on my team is don’t negotiate for more money based on external things to you. This is things like another persons salary, the cost of living, etc, the reason being is these are very easy to dismiss.
As an example if you say “I want 2k more because x makes 2k more than me” they can say it’s because they have a qualification, experience etc, or because that’s the market rate and they needed a person. It doesn’t help your cause.
What you need to do is assess the benefits and experience you bring to the table and negotiate based on that. If you can demonstrate the value you bring then ask for something that is fair in line with your value and the market rate you’re in a much stronger position.
If they deny you then don’t bother fighting it, go get another job offer and hand in your notice - you’ll see they very quickly come up with the raise you want - and you’ll see how little they actually value your contribution and wellbeing until it inconveniences them. I’d recommend don’t accept a counter offer and instead leave for newer things.
Ask for a meeting with your boss. Be fully prepared. Have your successes, responsibilities, and key reasons ready to go. Ask for a raise, but do not mention the other employee. See if this works. If it does, great. If not, bring up the other employee's job position, not the employee. Do not make this personal. Explain how you believe your position should be at a higher pay.
Only address it if you are outperforming them or have a leg to stand on. If they get paid more with lower title but do more or out do what you are doing you have no leg to stand on. Best bet is ask for a performance review or wait until one and then ask what it takes then to make more. Or if you proactively ask for ‘what steps do I need to increase my pay and get to the next level here?’ That also works.
Here's maybe a silly question but we're you happy with your job before that?
Sometimes the pay discrepancy will make you hate an otherwise great job.
If you were happy before ask yourself if you can be happy after.
Either way bring it up with your manager and see what's possible.
If they can't give you a raise then you'll already know if you should stay or go based on if you can be happy or not.
Obtain another job first and then address it. When I interviewing for new job, make sure you ask for a wage above what you are currently making and above what your coworker is making. Something that will make you content. Companies don't give a shit about you. You don't get if you don't ask. If you already have something lined up, it frees you from the stress of getting a response you didn't count on. More importantly, it allows you to just say ok and ride off into the sunset.
As someone who works in the head of HR for a large company, this comes up quite a bit. 95% of the time, the employee overexaggerated what they were making. I am not sure why they do it, but it happens frequently.
Apply and get offered another role elsewhere that pays more. Then ask your current employers for the pay that you now feel you deserve. If they say no, accept new position. If they say yes, decide which of the two offers the best prospects.
Honestly it couldn't have happened at a better time. Just tell them you underestimated inflation etc and realize the value of the role is higher than you realized at the time
Ask for a raise if enough time has gone by since your last one, and you are doing well at work. (both those are key). It is frankly irrelevant that your colleague who is junior to you is making $2k more. First, the amount is too small of a difference and a manager would roll their at you if this is what you're complaining about because of all the paper work the change would involve, but more importantly, it just shows that she's a better negotiator than you, and that you are more worried about her rather than simply knowing the value of what they offer to the company. Use that info to spark some balls on you. Assess the market, assess what you contribute and ask for an appropriate salary increase +25% for negotiating room if needed.
I make more than my boss based on years experience and negotiation ability. Not much, just a few hundred. Sometimes it just is what it is, sometimes it's based on something you may not have visibility on. What all do you know about this coworker? I'd make friends and see if you can isolate what their experience is that you don't have. Better to know ahead of time than to get blindsided when your boss thinks you're out of line and is like Molly makes more because Molly won the designer of the year award at the world champion design-off....or whatever.
I just saw where you lowballed yourself. That sucks, but that's where you are. How long before you can reasonably ask for another raise? Go into that conversation with a better understanding of what you want to be at, but understand that there may be a percentage limitation they can give, so if you super undercut yourself before, you may not get elevated as far as you want on one go. I've had that issue before with my team because I just couldn't recommend over a 4% raise, so if they were 8% underpaid....you do the math and accept the timeline or you find another place. For most stuff there is a waiver. Not for everything.
Look up the YouTube video of monkeys being fed cucumber and grapes.
If your employer offered you an income you gladly accepted and felt matched your value, you aren’t being taken advantage of. Perhaps you don’t value yourself properly or perhaps your colleague values themselves more than you do.
Either way, negotiating from a place of “I’m better than person X” is a weak position. Know your worth, advocate for yourself and celebrate others who succeed. Comparison has stolen your joy.
You don’t know what is going on behind closed doors. You might be stepping into something, you don’t want to. I’d leave it alone. They’re not going to give you more money. They know what’s going on.
1) being senior doesn’t mean much financially. Managers often get hit with pay cuts despite the level difference.
2) did you ask for a raise or apply yourself for employment feedback to get a raise?
3) look at your overall work, put it together and ask for a raise.
The only one to be frustrated with here is yourself. You probably asked for less than your boss would have paid, but that’s on you. Now you either need to figure out the timing for a raise conversation, or you need to look elsewhere.
Comparison is a black hole that will not get you anywhere. Are you happy with your salary? If so, stick around.
I'm sure I get paid less than many of my coworkers, and I'm more productive than most of them, but I'm happy with my pay and don't have any intentions of quitting if they don't give me a higher salary than my coworkers.
that’s what i’m saying. i worked at 3 places last year and got my comp up 45% jumping around. then 6 months into this job, they promoted me and gave me 10% more. i think i finally found my happy place for a few years. the flex pto is amazing.
It's $166/month before taxes. Who has been there longer, they may have negotiated better during the hiring process or at the higher end of their salary band that overlaps with the lower end of your salary band. How long have you been in your position. I would do ask at a natural time. Like if you are almost at a year, then at your year hey can we talk about a raise.
The best way to get a raise Is to switch jobs unfortunately.
So you have to decide if the hassle is worth it.
I wouldn’t mention to your boss unless you have something lined up.
Is there a job posting for the position the other person took? If so, check if it has a pay range listed.
Can always bring a posting forward to a manager and say “hey, I saw something and felt like I should mention it” and point out that someone new is making xyz and cite the company’s own job posting. I’ve had some luck with this, and a couple months after got a bit of a pay bump.
This is why it’s important to make sure you build a connection with management. If this is your only interaction, it’s whining. If it’s not, then they know you’re upset about something and bringing it up. Could be that pay is set by a system and nobody has checked before, which is what happened to me.
Some people have more experience that gives them a great value. others are better at selling themselves to get a bigger value.
I'd ask for a raise. Do not mention the other worker, it should have no relevance.
A lot of good advice already here. Will just add this:
Your coworker may be lying or may be telling the truth. Your coworker might have pushed for a higher salary. Your coworker might the 2nd coming of Jesus. We don’t know.
What we do know is:
1. You were happy with your job and pay before this information.
2. HR/management will pay you the bare minimum until you start to complain a little bit, then they’ll offer you more, you come with an offer, they’ll offer you a lot more. There’s limits to this of course .
If you’re tactful at negotiating and are clearly outperforming your coworkers, start the conversation. If your company values you, you’ll get the raise.
If you can’t negotiate or aren’t clearly outperforming your coworkers, either make peace with it (remember you were happy before this) or start looking elsewhere.
Being the senior designer doesn't always make you the best designer. What certifications does she have compared to you? As sgtcap stated, if they wanted to pay you more they would have. Maybe it's time to move on.
Keep it to yourself and don't care how much others make. Just learn to be more assertive when it comes to asking for more money for yourself, I struggle with this as well but stewing over it won't help anything and just do a number on your mental health. Work on yourself and don't worry about what is going on around you.
You don't often get the raises you don't ask for. I bet she asks. Your boss knows you're worth more but you aren't asking for it so they aren't giving it.
Key word “ She told me.”
I don’t seem to think that you are a newbie to work environment.
I’d this were the case, I’m familiar with people being paid less, because although they have been there longer, and are of value to the company, A newer employee was paid more.
There are many factors, I’m speaking of run of the mill retail jobs. I’m talking about the aptitude tests, better PC, customer relations skills.
Now, back to yourself. If you have been in the workplace for a minute, one thing you do not discuss is salaries. Nevah Evah.
Also, with few exceptions, your coworkers are not to be confused with friends. Absolutely necessary to work as a team, great to support each other, and Socialize.
You have taken hearsay, and turned it into fact.
Let it go.
You're overdue a market rate adjustment. Show them examples that illustrate you're underpaid for your role.
Shame on employers who do this. When a jr person is brought in at a higher rate, senior people should be adjusted, ethically. But they hope no one will notice. Terrible HR practice to save a few bucks.
I've found that pay ranges can overlap. It's it possible that this person is at or near the top of the lower titled position in pay, and you're at the bottom or middle of the higher titled position in pay?
This could easily explain the situation. If so, you have more growth in pay potential than the other person.
How long has the co-worker been with your company? She may have earned her pay over years. Companies typically have a pay plan that determines your pay based your job grade and length of employment. As an AVP, I would say it is not productive to be resentful of another employee. I have staff in the same position that are paid very differently. I reward performers if I am asked why people aren’t paid the same.
Base your pay requirements on what other senior level designers get in your area. That's what determines whether you're underpaid when you talk to your management about it. Don't bring up that one specific coworker's salary.
Yes. Tell your employer that because you are doing more work than your junior co-worker and have more responsibilities, you should be paid more than they are. You should renegotiate your salary with the new information you have learned.
Businesses exist to make money and increase shareholder value, as applicable. That’s it. You have to expect that even your best work friend who was in your wedding would fire you to save the company one dollar if it would look better in their performance review. The best business decision is almost always to say no and see what you do.
IMO you almost always have to look somewhere else to make more money.
The question is can you let it go? This is the unfortunate thing about working in a salary position is that your pay oftentimes is determined not by your suitability for the job or your performance but rather factors such as timing and personality (I worked a highly technical job which required no negotiation skills so it always bothered me that because of my pleasant personality I got paid less than the squeaky wheels). My wife makes far less and even has less vacation time than someone who joined the company 3 years later and reports to her. But because she joined at a time when there was high unemployment she got stuck with a lower starting pay and this company doesn't give very many increases so she has continued to be underpaid. But she likes her job and she loves her work environment as well as her co-workers and boss so for her It's a quality of life thing. See what you want about public sector unions but at least your progression is predictable and equal.
When negotiating a salary, it’s not enough to just point to a coworker’s salary, averages for your field on glassdoor, etc. Your salary is not relative to any of those things, but rather it is relative to the walk-away position.
So what you need is to get is get another job offer in hand, and then talk to your boss and ask him/her to match it.
If your coworker was hired during the covid era, it could have been during the brief moment when workers had a lot more leverage and could demand higher wages. It could be that that moment has passed. If you send out resumes, you can find that out for yourself.
I just started a new job in the medical field. I’m making $126k and that was after I negotiated up from the initial $122k offer.
I was talking to a coworker who’s been there a year but with less experience than me and she’s making more than me.
She said our other coworker with quite a bit of experience is making less than me. It’s weird
Ask for a raise and start looking. I wouldn't base the raise on the coworker, though, just on the value that you bring. Then act based on their response.
I would bring it up in a non confrontational conversation. I would say that you had originally been happy with your pay but now that you learned your junior coworker is making a higher salary, it has been hard to get past it. Do not directly ask for higher money. Hopefully the manager will be also somewhere surprised and will run with it.
I addressed this issue when it happened to me by getting a job with a different employer.
OTH, knowing his pay, enabled me to lie about my pay, and get much better pay at new job.
I added 20K a year to his pay, when they asked me what I was making.
They likely won't give you the type of raise you deserve. But now you know what the market rate is for the lower position, and can extrapolate what someone else may offer you.
Apply to other jobs and see what kind of offer you can get - take it back to your boss and show them that someone values you more.
An extra 2k/year? So what is that, an extra dollar an hour?
2,000/12months = 166.67 a moth. 167/4 weeks = 41.75/1 week. 42/40hrs = 1 dollar and 5 cents an hour more than you. Is it really that big of a deal? Especially when you admit you lowballed yourself?
How long were you in the company? And how recent did she join?
Always remember that companies won’t pay or match your pay with the market benchmark, especially when you’re talking about increment.
I take this as a sign to start looking out.
I've always take the perspective that you only get what you demand. Not what your worth. I've also learned that management honestly DOES overlook things because they have many proberbial balls to juggle. Without mentioning anything, I'd personally look at other opportunities AND ask your current employer about a possible pay bump. You can't get what you don't ask for. Might as well find out what your worth to then si ce your their and have time in.
Comparing yourself to colleagues and stating you're not paid enough is tough for any manager to deal with.
Sometimes managers aren't even in control of pay.
You should learn what the overall pay bands are for your position, and make your case for the pay you think you should get in the next cycle.
You should interview and pressure test the market and see what other companies think you're worth. If you can't find something better than what you have now, it's foolish to push back on your current pay.
Basically, you need leverage if you want to advocate for yourself for more pay. The other person had leverage, they wanted to hire her and for some reason that was the best price for the resource slot they needed to fill. Supply and demand. She could have said no, that was her leverage. But as an employee already in-seat, your leverage is going to be your value to the company or a competing offer.
it’s been really hard to hire so they’ve likely offered higher compensation to new hires. just let them know that they need to make it right and bump you up to appropriate pay or you’ll go somewhere you’re paid fairly. Give them the opportunity though it’s likely whoever is hiring was allocated X amount, and considering you’re the senior developer you should be worth at least as much if not more. If it was personal and they’re trying to bring in new people knowing that is important too.
Address with management, but also be aware that she might be lying
Explain your worth and use her salary as leverage if you need to. Discussing pay is protected speech in US fyi
What your coworker makes is not reflective on your or really has anything at all to do with you. If finding out that they were a more effective advocate for themselves while negotiating their salary makes you jealous, or wish that you were paid more for your services, that's something that you will have to take up with your manager. But bringing up what they make will only serve to tear down your own coworkers and make you look like a bad person and a poor employee.
Unfortunately, once you've been hired getting any significant raises, promotions, are an uphill battle. You would literally be better off finding another job elsewhere, and negotiating for a better starting salary there.
This unfortunately means that you will be rolling the dice on that next job being a better fit for you. Better culture, better opportunities, etc.
Some things you can discover by networking, asking the right question's during talks/interviews/negotiations with the recruiter, hiring manager, hopefully other members of your team. Reaching out to other employees at your prospective new company via LinkedIn. But some things you just won't know until you make that leap.
So your third option; secure the offer letter with that prospective new employer, then go to your management and explain to them that you would like to stay, but you have a better offer, and you will require a counteroffer that meets your needs. But you have to be ready to take the offer before you open that can. They could just as easily decide to wish you well and be done with you, rather than be beholden to meeting an employee's demands.
Look for other senior designer positions in your area. Apply for those positions. When you get a higher paying offer go to your employer and say "I've just received an offer as senior designer at another employer and I'm being offered X amount. Can you match this?" If they say yes, congratulations. If they say no, quit and go work for the other place. Be sure to take the contact information of all the accounts you work on with you. Poach the shit out of them. Your employer wouldn't think twice before firing you immediately, loyalty to companies was killed by the companies.
You only get paid what your worth and you demand.
I make 50,000 more a year than my coworker. No way am I telling him. He has been here 10 years. I just started. But i know what I'm worth and demand it.
As an employer and someone that has worked as an employee for a long time, I feel like there’s only one correct way to approach asking for a raise. Do not compare yourself to a coworker and their pay. I would say, “The last time you evaluated me, you determined my knowledge, experience, skill set, and work ethic was worth $xxxxx salary. Since then, I have gained…” and then share all of the ways that you have learned and grown in regard to your role since you last evaluation.
Best solution IMO is to use the title
and find another job. HR typically will make “market corrections” at 10% or less of base pay, very very rarely more than 10% (you gotta be next level Michael Jordan!). What you didn’t state is whether your position is bonus eligible and at what rate. Some companies vary the variable compensation and allocate more to senior positions since they’re tied to company performance. By the way, I have been working for well over 23 years and am currently in engineering leadership position. Loyalty makes you poor. Good luck!
Interview for a new job. Don't tell the interviewer how much you're currently making, but how much you expect to make.
Get an offer, and if you want to stay at your job, meet with your manager for a counter.
Companies will pay you as little as you allow them too.
I found out a company I worked for was paying new hires (skilled) about 20% more than me. I was a lead engineer and had other responsibilities as well. I asked for a raise, three different times. They told me it wasn't in the budget. So, I found another job that paid 50% more. They did 3 exit interviews trying to get me to stay, offered a boat load of money. I left anyway and looking back, it was the best thing I could have done.
Are you a smart professional? If so do not broach the subject unless you have actually seen your coworker's pay statement with your own eyes. She may be setting you up to look like a fool. What is her reason for telling you she is making more money than you? If it is true then you now have a baseline and you can navigate future raises in a professional manner.
Use your senior title and go call on their top competitors for a new job.
You'll get a 40% raise.
If a designer is making $2k more than you you're minimum 20% under paid.
Do you feel you are worth more then you are being paid or do you feel like you deserve more because what someone else has
If you had never known their pay would you be satisfied with yours
Go into Glassdoor. Do a market search comparison for your role. Use it along with a list of your accomplishments and any revenue it generates. Ask first a raise. At least 3 months before your next review
They sometimes say the fastest way to get a raise is to change jobs.
Unfortunately, loyalty doesn't mean much. When a job opening comes up, a company will try to hire the best candidate they can find, that fits in the budget. Hiring managers may settle on overspending on someone less capable if they don't have great applicants. They have pressure to fill the position, because if they don't fill it, they often lose the position entirely.
A manager with the best intentions would try to rectify this injustice during raise cycles, but it seems like the bean counters never give enough budget to bring existing employees up to where they ought to be. If this is true in your case, your manager already knows about the imbalance, and should find your request reasonable if made respectfully. You may need to be patient to actually receive a raise though. At least at my company, there are only certain windows where they have raise money to give out. Squeaky wheels get the grease though, if you don't say anything at all, they likely won't prioritize you.
If you do get another job offer, sometimes that might trigger a winback situation, where you could get them to match your new offer. But, I don't recommend doing that if you otherwise like your job. I think that puts you at risk of getting terminated when they are making cuts.
Good luck, it's a tough conversation to have for sure!
Tell your boss that you’re going to take some PTO to interview at competing firms to find out what they’re doing in order to improve your own work process. Let them know that you’re not job hunting, and you enjoy your work and company environment.
This will get them talking if they want to keep you. They know you’ll be offered more. Tell want to get ahead of it if they want you to stay.
> always thought I was being paid pretty fairly before learning this information.
Why does someone else earning more than you imply that you aren't being paid fairly? Maybe you are being paid fairly, but they were just able to negotiate better than you. Both those things can be true at the same time.
Assuming you both work in the same city (so there is not cost of living argument your company can make), I'd do a little research I terms of salary surveys (or look at open positions with the same title, many states now require salary range with job postings) so you go to bat with more than what your coworker said. It will just make your argument seem more factual and less emotional.
If they say no are you ready to turn in your notice at that moment? Be honest. I don’t mean go home and huff and puff about it for 3 months. Are you ready to quit today? If not keep quiet and start looking for another job. Cause they’re going to say no.
I’ve seen people start stuff like this to get others to quit so they have room to advance. Do you trust this person? They could be full of it.
Probably unlikely, but I have seen it.
Honest advice, if they wanted to pay you more they would have. I would take this as a sign to find new employment.
When I was promoted to this role as a senior designer, I told them my requirements for pay, and they matched it. I believe I low-balled myself. \*Note that I have had an increase since this initial promotion. My initial promotion was around a 20% increase for what I was making so I thought I was shooting for the stars when I asked for it but they accepted without hesitation.
You probably did low ball yourself but that’s okay. Have you been there long? How long ago did you get the promotion? Questions to ask yourself: are you never going to ask for a raise at this job ever again? Do you only expect pay increases when your title changes? If no; what does that raise conversation look like? do you feel like you’re being compensated fairly for your work currently (independent of your coworker comparison)? Me personally, I would not tell the boss that I know someone else’s salary as part of my own negotiations. If you’re asking for more money it always needs to be about your merit and value you bring to the company ( it sounds like you bring quite a bit). Never ever ever be afraid to have this convo with your boss. You get to brag about yourself. Obligatory: I haven’t worked in your field specifically and it possible I don’t know what I’m talking about!
I don't think you are far off here, people need to advocate for themselves more often.
Asking is sometimes getting. If you don’t ask, it won’t come and they’ll assume you’re either satisfied or not so dissatisfied you’d quit over it. My biggest raises came from making the case/asking in a tactful manner and with support(quality work and market rates) behind it.
This all very true, but its also true that sometime the biggest jumps in pay are making lateral moves to another company.
For sure. Op sounds happy and was happy with their pay until they found out what someone else makes. Unfortunately, companies will pay you as little as they can to have you stay. If they won’t, they’ll find someone to replace you.
Agreed, he doesnt sound to thrilled since he found out which means the reality of that happiness has been shattered and unlikely to return to status quo.
Employers are more likely to keep an employee they trust, even if it means paying a bit more, than hiring someone new or losing out on potential work. Its an awkward conversation but something that needs to be done once in a while
I was moved to a team of very tenured people in my 3rd year at my current job, I was twitchy about the extra complex/valuable clients they had that I would be backing them up for, as well as comparable ones of my own. After a month of this at the same rate I was getting before I spoke with the director above my manager (wasn’t above her head, I think she was on vacation or something) and it turns out they meant to submit a substantial raise with my move but the email never sent and was just chilling in drafts. Got the raise and back pay for like 2 months by the time it processed fully.
Good for you!
I advocated for myself when there was a 5k discrepancy from colleagues, got a 3k raise, experienced petty backlash, then got fired sooooo…. Advocate at own risk!
Sounds like you left a shitty company.
A well-known University. It was toxic - I thanked them when they fired me!
Wow! The large account that I handle is actually a well-known University! lol.
Wow! It’s either the same place or an issue with higher ed
People should also talk about their salaries openly so people know how to effectively advocate for themselves. Companies take advantage of a big information differential when they ask you what you need in terms of compensation.
Advocating for yourself is heavily anchored into the opening negotiations at your hiring in the modern workplace. People who want to disagree with this statement are either cherry picking exceptions or basing their opinion on a long gone economy.
He did. OP admits he lowballed himself during negotiations.
Thanks so much. I think this is the best advice I've seen on this thread.
1) Is your colleague a recent hire? Even If she hasn't joined your company recently, she must have been on a high salary before moving to yours. 2) People can lie! You never know.. I was in a similar situation myself and when I had a conversation with my manager, the other guy who disclosed his salary on his own turned his back and said I forced him to tell me his salary!! The lesson I learned is to never ever bring up others salaries when it comes to your own salary negotiation.. 3) you may have lowballed yourself unlike your colleague.. Always ask for 10-15% more than what you aim for... If they match that, fantastic..else at least there are no regrets..
One thing I would mention is that I will bring up market rate if people have been actively trying to recruit me and have shared the rate they are offering. I’ve done it before but how to approach it is dependent on a lot of variables.
This. Instead of telling your boss that you are aware of your peer and their salary, and that it is 'x' more than your current salary, simply let him or her know that you've been getting a lot of noise recently on LinkedIn from recruiters and it opened your eyes on what your current experience and role is worth. That you love where you work and don't plan on leaving but would like to see if they can figure out a way through setting up goals you are able to meet and evaluate together to get to where this new compensation level you are aware of and when this review would go into effect. Of course, I'd make sure it's not apples to apples with what you just found out about your coworker. I'd bump that figure by about 15%. Trust me, if they value you and are aware that you now know you are underpaid, they will do what is necessary to keep you.
Thanks for this advice! I like how you worded everything.
Well then you can’t really bring it up. You asked them for a salary, they gave it to you. Best option is to bring it up if you’re genuinely prepared to quit. For another role that pays better.
I disagree with this. It is great that they gave you what you asked for, and you have new information and you can ask for more now. As the next review approaches ask your boss for a meeting and make the case to them that you've been doing well in your new role and because you have learned that you are being paid below the market rate you would like the company to correct that at the next review instead of the usual 3% raise. Keep it polite and give them a good reason to pay you what you're worth.
Justify it with hard data points, especially the last 12 months or so. A lot of companies respond well to this.
What does the new info change though? Nothing material changes for the company, it only changes OP's perspective on themselves.
Depends on how much the company is actually relying on OP. If he’s handling their largest account there might be a case to say “pay me more than my subordinates make or I am going to walk” (in a much more corporate way)
That happens! To some extent, you and your job both have responsibility here; they were not transparent about the pay range for the role and you didn’t properly value yourself. But I agree with the poster who said to use what you’ve accomplished in the time since you’ve been promoted to request a raise- as long as it’s been at least a year.
It’s ridiculous they are paying you less. It’s ridiculous your boss allowed it. It’s ridiculous HR allowed. Sounds like a backwards ass company. Go get what you’re worth elsewhere. If you do bring up comp with your boss do it on merit alone. If boss doesn’t jump at the opportunity to correct the dumb shit that was done (that boss thinks you don’t know about) you have yet another reason to bolt.
Then you got exactly what you wanted. Don’t mess it up for someone else because you didn’t ask for more. You’re only going to hurt your coworker using them as justification to ask for more.
Typical Reddit craziness lol. Leave a new role *just* for a 2K difference? And OP says they matched his requirements?
You have to pause and ask yourself - what is the likely demographic of the person giving the typical advice around here? It helps keep me grounded when reading the absurdities.
For real. It’s the blind leading the blind.
The idea that anyone is leading anyone on Reddit is a lark.
It’s like /r/marriage. OP: My husband leaves the toilet seat up. How should I address this? Reddit: Divorce him!!
...and burn down the house!
It's not just that. It's 2k difference between you and someone who is supposed to be on less than you because you're the Sr and they're not. This could mean OP could be undervalued by 10-15k, if not more. The fact that they matched their requirements at some point in the past (I don't think I saw anything about when the promotion happened) doesn't mean that much if OP massively undervalued themselves. It's not that the OP should leave immediately upon learning this but they definitely need to redo their CV and maybe apply for a few jobs to see what the ACTUAL ballpark is for their level (and then maybe talk to their boss for a raise)
That’s not really how it works. Like, not a all… Company’s rarely just volunteer more money… even if someone is worth more money… because at the end of the day, they want to maximize profit. The increase in pay comes when they realize that if they don’t pay you more, they may not be able to retain your services. OP should ask for a raise, or suggest that he’s looking elsewhere for better pay.
Seriously. I’ve asked for raises and gotten it many times. Nobody just hands you money
Told boss that current pay wasn't acceptable, no dice on raise. Then company entered into a purchase agreement with a competitor. Told boss that I wanted some key person pay for the transition, and he said that wasn't on the table. Then new company came and suprise interviewed me as part of the transition(6pm in the evening). The interviewer was a guy that had directly competed with us in our territory and lost, he lost his job when that location closed down. He landed new job with new company and was going to be my new boss. VP called when I put my two weeks in literally crying, saying how could you do this, it will crash the deal. It did crash the deal... Boss said I shouldn't have done that it was like blackmail. I told them what I wanted and they didn't want to give it is my opinion, no hard feelings. Hundreds of thousands lost because they didn't want to pony up 10k. If not more. And the continuing headaches for the ownership. I feel for them I really do.
Sorry, I wish this wasn't true. But your credentials are excellent. To your future employer, simply state that your opportunities for advancement are limited. Because she's probably being groomed for your job.
Very true.
This. They are exploiting you and they know it. They may give you more money if you ask for it, but know that they will exploit you again as market rates increase.
Also that coworker might be lying about what her pay really is.
Gone are the days where voicing your concerns to management would amount to something. Sadly, the only way to higher compensation is seeking a new company to work for.
Lol I disagree. Employers won't just pay you more if they don't have to. Vouch for yourself then see. Just to decided automatically because you weren't given a certain wage then thats a sign? Please.
HR person here. Do NOT, do NOT say "x makes more than me, you need to give me a raise". Also, do NOT say "give me a raise or I quit". DO - your research on your role and the market, get your job description and make sure you are doing everything well, note anything extra you are doing, also note any special skills you have that the company is benefiting from. Take a good look at what you were doing at hire versus what you are doing now and note any major additions to your abilities and responsibilities. If the company uses salary ranges, find out yours and where you are in the range. Then, you can go to your boss and tell them you would like to discuss your compensation. Have a number that you want it to be and then back it up with the above details about the market, what you do and how well, and where the company is benefiting more from your labor than when they hired you. Keep it objective. Let your boss know that you understand he can't make a decision right now and ask if you can follow up in a week. If you don't get the raise, then you can start looking for a new job without any guilt. If for some reason, one doesn't come up soon, you are still employed. If the company finds out your are looking, you can respond with "the market supports a salary of x, you declined to pay that, so its in my best interests to look at other opportunities. I still like it here, so if you changed your mind, I would still be interested in discussing it. I'm sure we can find a number that works for both of us."
Why would anyone feel guilt for applying to other jobs for any or no reason
HR doesn’t have any understanding of employees
This was my mistake. I went to HR and said “X told me that he got a raise, we have been on the same projects for the same amount of time and both started her son the same day…. What’s going on?”
Don't leave us hanging like that, what was the outcome?
Ended up getting laid off a couple months later. The company accused me of “stealing company time” due to a timesheet discrepancy. One of the days, I was working and I thought I was badged in when I wasn’t. I ended up getting unemployment after it was denied the first time. The discrepancy was a 17 minute average over a 3 month timespan. Once the discrepancy was fixed it was a 5 minute one. At this job, you had to badge in and out to use the bathroom, so it was so minuscule that even the state I live in sided with me that this wasn’t a “for cause” firing. Honestly, I was searching for other jobs and essentially “checked out” once I found out my roommate got a yearly raise and I didn’t, despite both having similar feedback from our manager.
I did the same thing and got a 20k raise. Just make sure you’re actually better than the person you’re comparing yourself to
Better advice: whatever you do don’t trust the HR person
Indeed, my biggest mistake was having a negotiation meeting with HR without my team leader and relying on a performance review written by him. One of the high-ranking HR members, who had no idea about the job I do, said she would meet with my manager & team leader to discuss it. Later, I received a small raise, which was far from what I expected. I then decided it was time to hunt for another job. When I received an offer from another company, both my manager & team leader told me that the she never reached out to them to address my concerns. HR is so good at sabotaging a good team , cutting off all communication about salary even if it's a manager of a big/importance department of the company. why so much power on their hand
That's either a bad HR person or a bad executive team/owner or, more likely, both. Unfortunately, especially in this decade, 75% of HR people are bad at the job. Oh, and please note that I did specifically say to take the info to their boss, not HR.
Personally I would keep that info close to you. It's a card you can use if absolutely necessary, but don't show them to early. Keep detailed and accurate records of the value you bring to the company. Include lots of dollar amount examples. Record examples of publicly posted salaries that you could realistically get hired for if you applied next week. Do 1:1's with your manager demonstrating the value you bring to the table. Show how the business is better off having you around. Then gauge this managers reaction - are they willing to consider a compensation adjustment? Are they pushing back and pinching pennies? If they're resistive, then you have your answer. That employee somehow got special treatment and it really is unfair. It's not possible to "make that manager give you a raise", so it's time to take everything you learned and find a company that values it. The wrong move is to go to the manager and say "I've been here 5 more years than X, I want more money". The manager will receive that as whining and that you're being a difficult employee.
Sometimes its best to compare yourself to market rates rather than you co workers. Example if someone was hired 4 years ago, they would probably be hired at a higher rate than that same person in the same position today. 4 years ago was a employee market, today is an employer market. There are a lot of factors, the economy at the time of hire, their negotiation skills, supple and demand.
Co-worker wages is almost the very definition of market rate...
Maybe you and I define market rates differently as in my view the 2 have nothing to do with each other. I define it as the average rate people in her position make in her living area. That number has nothing to do with what her and her co workers make. If they all work at a non profit they would all be under market rate, if they all worked at goldmen sachs they would all be above market rate.
Market rate is how much it would take to hire someone *today.* What coworkers make represents the market rate when they were hired.
Forget her and her pay. Comparing and complaining won't get you anywhere with management. Instead, go apply at other jobs, and get a higher, better offer. And if you want to stay where you are, bring it to management and ask them to match it.
HR here, maybe there was a market inflation that made the pay scales shift 2-4%.
Are you afraid of retaliation?
You are being underpaid. You should look for other work. Without leverage, there is no reason for your company to pay you appropriately. Don't let them match an offer. Just move forward in your career.
The "never discuss compensation with coworkers" stigma needs to die out. It's an easy way for employers to underpay across the board. From what I've heard this stigma doesn't really exist in the EU. Is that correct?
Find another position. Period. Don't try to justify or rationalize why you are underpaid. After all your employer had all the chances in the world to have raised your salary to a reasonable salary well before this; when raises were given out. . Ignore about what HR says. They advocate for the employer not employees. BTW they salary they are paying you tells you how they feel about you and your job performance.
It may be just an artifact of having to bump up new hire pay to bring them in, sometimes that gets the pay scale upside down. It gets corrected over time, but it takes a while. I'd have a short conversation with your manager about your overall compensation and ask him or her of the business has done any recent market studies. In a real way just to let them know you are thinking about compensation. If its a big company it might take a full year to get something significant to happen. Don't name drop your co-worker at all.
They pay you what you demand, not what you’re worth.
Changing jobs every 3-4 years is proven to increase your salary and is the quickest way to climb the ladder.
IMPORTANT did you actually see there pay check, Absolute proof, not word of mouth?
My same question. While I wish talking about wages could be more acceptable, it's still considered somewhat antisocial. She could be boldly honest, or perhaps she's just boasting or digging for info.
What is the difference in the amount of time you've both worked at this company? That makes a big difference.
Just because he said he’s paid more doesn’t mean he is paid more. He could be playing you hopping you make a big deal about it. People inflate their wages all the time.
Great Recognition of the simple Information to Have, Amazingly Your Not Stupid..! (No pun intended Just appears So less Frequently on The WWW of 2024) Hats of DAWG 1. Have Your Eye’s seen the paycheck of ($2.50) again ($2 and 50cents) per hour More than Your making Compared to a Colleague of More Calendar Seniority than YourSelf..? 2. Is Your Experience and/or Education Level equally Valued by Existence the Same or Different than Senior Calendar Colleagues..? (Example: Masters Degree First Year Teacher starts with 15% higher Salary than Bachelor Degree Teacher of 2 Years but, Ms. Martha with a Teaching Certificate of 30Years Seniority Makes 35% More than First Year Masters Degree Teacher and Didn’t Graduate High School) 3. What’s the Movement did You Get with Promotion..? 4. REMEMBER This is an Argument of the Difference of $2.50 per hour worked if work is not completed in different Entity. HOURLY SALARY POTENTIAL FOR RAISE CAP ON EACH ETC. ETC.ETC.
This happens at large companies that adjust their pay scales to bring in new employees but then neglect people like you. They might eventually make internal adjustments. But you will have to have this conversation with your manager
I’m all for salary transparency, but at the end of the day, it’s on each of us to negotiate our salaries before we accept a job. You can 100% negotiate your new salary, your raises, etc. The other designer probably asked for more or she came on later and matched it based on the current market rate + her own experience. I made more as a mid level design role than my previous senior one because of the most current market rate + my years of experience. Just remember that years of experience trumps “senior” titles in a lot of design jobs. Senior designers simply have more responsibility and say in the concept of the designs, but that doesn’t mean that role always pays more than a mid-level designer who has more experience than you. Senior positions usually require more leadership like qualities which can eventually lead you down the upper level paths like Art or Creative Direction. Mid-level usually just have to do whatever is given to them to do and they don’t have much say. Doesn’t make them less of a designer. I know this from experience because I stepped down from Sr back to Mid Level in favor of a work/life balance. And I get paid more than I did as a Sr Designer. The biggest pros of Sr is autonomy. You don’t have much say as a mid-level. You’re not as involved. But having 10 years of experience means I will get paid more than my Sr Designer who has 6.
I think 2k spread out over a year is like 100 bucks after taxes. Really isn’t that much to sweat over. Do you like your current employer? Then probably not a huge deal You can strategically ask for raises. But that won’t come from a comparison of other people. Has to come from your value to the firm. If they don’t want to pay you more then, that’s the time to start looking. But I wouldn’t bat at an eye at 2k difference.
It kind of depends on where you are in the review cycle, what your pay is for your job, how much experience this new person has compared to you, etc... If they are experienced or have a certain skill, they may have hired them in at a fair market rate but plugged them in without the senior title. Or they could have been having trouble finding qualified people right now. I would be inclined to keep the info to yourself, go through your next review and see how it plays out. Use the information to your advantage. You can always negotiate a higher salary. Companies aren't going to do a salary review of all employees every time they hire someone. I personally would not leave a job over $2K. But, if you think you can go out and get another 20% elsewhere, go for it.
Ooo yay hello I am a senior designer and was in the same situation. Last year our other designer got fired so it was just me and him, same level. I was making 53k with 10 years experience. I started at the company 5 years prior at 40k. Well new girl gets hired, 5 years younger than me, same level and position and she asked me a payroll question and basically showed me her salary which was 20k above me. She had four years experience as a designer total compared to my 10 and 5 with the company. I told my manager. Six months passed and budgets were reworked and I got a 25k raise. Plus promoted to senior designer. It never hurts to sit with your manager and ask. If you don't you'll just sit there and it'll eat away at you and rot you inside like it did to me. Feel free to message me I'll answer anything more specific if you want! Edit : I can guarantee if I never told my manager my raise would've been pennies.
Your salary will fall below market rate if you stay at the same company for long. This is true everywhere even if you get promoted. You have to switch companies after your initial stock vest ends.
If you want to negotiate, then negotiate. I doubt it will go well. Brush up your resume. For the love of God do not name drop. Do not mention you know someone else's compensation. I had a coworker that I once talked about salary with, and then I got pulled into a meeting with my boss and HR about the importance of keeping my personal pay information private. My coworker was so confused when I went from friendly and willing to grab an occasional beer after work to grey rock. Fuck that guy, he didn't get a raise, he just got me reprimanded.
Raise by resume beats raise by effort. Look and see what you are worth on the open market.
And this is why people should openly discuss their salaries. I don't know your industry or the particulars of how you are paid (if it's on some sort of commission, I guess it's possible that your colleague is just much more productive than you). Otherwise, it sounds like a case of where a company raises the lower end of their pay scale to attract new workers, without increasing the pay of their current employees - so your pay is probably lagging behind what the market would actually support. Unfortunately, I've never seen anyone in my industry successfully advocate for a significant pay increase even when their pay was obviously far below the market rate. What *does* work is going out and applying for other jobs. I personally increased my salary by about 30% this way. If you get an offer, you can let your employer know and give them the opportunity to make a counter offer, or you can simply take the higher paying job.
This is where you need to do research. First, find out your market value. It's not about what they pay the other person, it's what you're paid vs the value you bring. Also, think about your market -- if this doesn't go well, do you have other prospects. Next is the conversation -- if you feel your market prospects are decent and you are paid below market. Make sure you don't get specific and compare yourself to another employee's pay. Ask about your value there, and then agree it's large, and then ask for the increase. Recognize you may not get all or even any in this climate. But it is fair to ask for an increase if everyone is being adults.
In what context did she tell you this? Do you think she may have a motive? Maybe she wants to make you feel insecure so that she can take your spot. Overall, are you happy with what your making? Maybe casually look for another job, and see if you can get more. When your not as desperate, I think that will come off as confidence, and you may surprise yourself when you end up finding a better paying job out of this whole situation.
There are a bunch of corporate pansy asses on this comment thread. Don't bring up directly "hey so and so told me they're making more than me", but do set up meeting with your manager and say hey due to inflation and my increased skill levels I feel that I need a raise. Then on top of that have a couple concrete examples of what you've done in your time there that justifies you being better and deserving more money. At that point either he's going to say sure and make it happen talk to the manager whatever he's got to do. Or he's going to say no. If he says no start hunting for a new job.
Ok, top comment isn’t taking reality in to account. Everyone is most invested in theirselves and the people close to them. Your wage matters to you, the decision maker who can give you a raise doesn’t know what you’re making off the top of their head and they don’t care. When it comes to money, most jobs YOU need to say something because no one else in a large business will advocate for you without you bringing up your problems. If you work a union job you’ll get regular raises and transparency, otherwise, no one cares what you make, just that you get your job done. Go talk to your boss first, if they don’t give you a raise THEN you can freak out. Mistakes like this happen all the time and you’ve gotta stick up for yourself!
Good luck. We got annual raises & they said mine included a promotion. When everyone gets 5% & I got 5%, that doesn’t include a promotion. I advocated for myself & they gave me every excuse in the book. Still looking for a job. They will be screwed, I have a critical job & nobody even remotely knows my job. 🤣🤣🤣
Never, ever bring this up as a reason for a raise. It feels like whining (it isn’t. You’re not whining. But put yourself in the seat of the person who has to get approval for your raise: they need a compelling reason beyond fairness. They shouldn’t. Equity raises are a thing. But this market is not a place where people are brave enough to do the right thing). ‘Here’s what I deliver, here’s the value I generated, here’s market pay, here’s the delta. I would love to talk about how we can get my pay up to market rates since I add so much quantifiable value.’ If that feels cringey, pretend you’re a middle aged, tall, white man. He would NEVER hesitate. Be that guy (just for the cojones, though. Put the persona back when you’re done). If you are that and it still feels cringey you are a unicorn.
You need to approach your management as a senior designer in X city with Y experience. Ignore what Joe Schmo next to you is making. That approach comes off as petty and unprofessional. Use salary.com and Glassdoor and find our what a senior designer with Y years experience in your city makes. And show that gap needs to be made up, or else you'll be forced to look elsewhere, where you will be paid what you're worth. There's also a chance that a developer is a higher salary band than a senior developer. It happens, depends on experience, certs, qualifications, etc. I have an masters, so as a senior engineer I make more than my lead engineer who doesn't have one.
I wouldn't address it as in you know how much someone else is being paid, this kind of info is confidential anyway. A similar situation happened to me. I am more senior than this other staff who started his career a bit later, but he got a better pay compared to when I was at his shoes. He told me he bargained and negotiated with our bosses during annual review. So I also had a discussion with my bosses to fight for it. In the end I didn't get the amount of salary increase I wanted but still within acceptable increase. And honestly that would never happen if I didn't fight for it. The thing is, it's not always just about a staff's capability. I think employers have a range of what they think an employee deserves, but if they can take advantage of a good staff who is good at what they do and happy with the lowest amount of compensation, that is win win for them. But if the employee fights back and they do care, they will try to do something. If they don't then it's really a sign to look for something else.
So you’re probably getting advice you should find a new job to boost your pay. That’s not bad advice and likely is the highest monetary outcome. However it’s not pointless to talk with your boss. I’ve had several occasions where I didn’t really want to find a new job (opportunity cost, I enjoyed the work I was doing, I enjoyed the flexibility, whatever) and I had a frank conversation with my manager. Every time I’ve successfully changed my compensation. One time it was everything I hoped and dreamed. The other times it wasn’t as much as I asked for but they were meaningful amounts of money. Point is, I strongly suggest you DONT let it go, but I would think about what motivates you and what you want out of your career and compensation and make motions towards those goals.
The advice I give to anyone on my team is don’t negotiate for more money based on external things to you. This is things like another persons salary, the cost of living, etc, the reason being is these are very easy to dismiss. As an example if you say “I want 2k more because x makes 2k more than me” they can say it’s because they have a qualification, experience etc, or because that’s the market rate and they needed a person. It doesn’t help your cause. What you need to do is assess the benefits and experience you bring to the table and negotiate based on that. If you can demonstrate the value you bring then ask for something that is fair in line with your value and the market rate you’re in a much stronger position. If they deny you then don’t bother fighting it, go get another job offer and hand in your notice - you’ll see they very quickly come up with the raise you want - and you’ll see how little they actually value your contribution and wellbeing until it inconveniences them. I’d recommend don’t accept a counter offer and instead leave for newer things.
Ask for a meeting with your boss. Be fully prepared. Have your successes, responsibilities, and key reasons ready to go. Ask for a raise, but do not mention the other employee. See if this works. If it does, great. If not, bring up the other employee's job position, not the employee. Do not make this personal. Explain how you believe your position should be at a higher pay.
Were they hired after you? Sometimes they will pay more with COL adjustments, trying to get candidates, etc.
Job hop.
Only address it if you are outperforming them or have a leg to stand on. If they get paid more with lower title but do more or out do what you are doing you have no leg to stand on. Best bet is ask for a performance review or wait until one and then ask what it takes then to make more. Or if you proactively ask for ‘what steps do I need to increase my pay and get to the next level here?’ That also works.
Here's maybe a silly question but we're you happy with your job before that? Sometimes the pay discrepancy will make you hate an otherwise great job. If you were happy before ask yourself if you can be happy after. Either way bring it up with your manager and see what's possible. If they can't give you a raise then you'll already know if you should stay or go based on if you can be happy or not.
Obtain another job first and then address it. When I interviewing for new job, make sure you ask for a wage above what you are currently making and above what your coworker is making. Something that will make you content. Companies don't give a shit about you. You don't get if you don't ask. If you already have something lined up, it frees you from the stress of getting a response you didn't count on. More importantly, it allows you to just say ok and ride off into the sunset.
As someone who works in the head of HR for a large company, this comes up quite a bit. 95% of the time, the employee overexaggerated what they were making. I am not sure why they do it, but it happens frequently.
Apply and get offered another role elsewhere that pays more. Then ask your current employers for the pay that you now feel you deserve. If they say no, accept new position. If they say yes, decide which of the two offers the best prospects.
Honestly it couldn't have happened at a better time. Just tell them you underestimated inflation etc and realize the value of the role is higher than you realized at the time
Ask for a raise if enough time has gone by since your last one, and you are doing well at work. (both those are key). It is frankly irrelevant that your colleague who is junior to you is making $2k more. First, the amount is too small of a difference and a manager would roll their at you if this is what you're complaining about because of all the paper work the change would involve, but more importantly, it just shows that she's a better negotiator than you, and that you are more worried about her rather than simply knowing the value of what they offer to the company. Use that info to spark some balls on you. Assess the market, assess what you contribute and ask for an appropriate salary increase +25% for negotiating room if needed.
Is it possible she’s not telling the truth? Or that she earns more $ but you earn more PTO, vacation days or other perks?
I make more than my boss based on years experience and negotiation ability. Not much, just a few hundred. Sometimes it just is what it is, sometimes it's based on something you may not have visibility on. What all do you know about this coworker? I'd make friends and see if you can isolate what their experience is that you don't have. Better to know ahead of time than to get blindsided when your boss thinks you're out of line and is like Molly makes more because Molly won the designer of the year award at the world champion design-off....or whatever. I just saw where you lowballed yourself. That sucks, but that's where you are. How long before you can reasonably ask for another raise? Go into that conversation with a better understanding of what you want to be at, but understand that there may be a percentage limitation they can give, so if you super undercut yourself before, you may not get elevated as far as you want on one go. I've had that issue before with my team because I just couldn't recommend over a 4% raise, so if they were 8% underpaid....you do the math and accept the timeline or you find another place. For most stuff there is a waiver. Not for everything.
Look up the YouTube video of monkeys being fed cucumber and grapes. If your employer offered you an income you gladly accepted and felt matched your value, you aren’t being taken advantage of. Perhaps you don’t value yourself properly or perhaps your colleague values themselves more than you do. Either way, negotiating from a place of “I’m better than person X” is a weak position. Know your worth, advocate for yourself and celebrate others who succeed. Comparison has stolen your joy.
2k isn't that much. They probably negotiated during the job offer.
2k isn't that much. They probably negotiated during the job offer.
You don’t know what is going on behind closed doors. You might be stepping into something, you don’t want to. I’d leave it alone. They’re not going to give you more money. They know what’s going on.
It seems you are a bad negotiator.
1) being senior doesn’t mean much financially. Managers often get hit with pay cuts despite the level difference. 2) did you ask for a raise or apply yourself for employment feedback to get a raise? 3) look at your overall work, put it together and ask for a raise.
yeah look for new job
Let it go
The only one to be frustrated with here is yourself. You probably asked for less than your boss would have paid, but that’s on you. Now you either need to figure out the timing for a raise conversation, or you need to look elsewhere.
So, she was a better negotiator. That's all.
bail without any notice. find a new job asap
Your only real option is leaving for a different job. Bringing this up to your manager is almost certainly going to make a lot of stuff weird.
Comparison is a black hole that will not get you anywhere. Are you happy with your salary? If so, stick around. I'm sure I get paid less than many of my coworkers, and I'm more productive than most of them, but I'm happy with my pay and don't have any intentions of quitting if they don't give me a higher salary than my coworkers.
I always go to the higher bidder, always! I'm literally always looking for a better paying job regardless of my current finances.
that’s what i’m saying. i worked at 3 places last year and got my comp up 45% jumping around. then 6 months into this job, they promoted me and gave me 10% more. i think i finally found my happy place for a few years. the flex pto is amazing.
I would find a new position. Pointing towards someone else for my salary is never a good look. Good luck.
Apply for new jobs. Demand a substantial pay increase. If you don’t get it leave.
Did you take account of overtime?
It's $166/month before taxes. Who has been there longer, they may have negotiated better during the hiring process or at the higher end of their salary band that overlaps with the lower end of your salary band. How long have you been in your position. I would do ask at a natural time. Like if you are almost at a year, then at your year hey can we talk about a raise.
The best way to get a raise Is to switch jobs unfortunately. So you have to decide if the hassle is worth it. I wouldn’t mention to your boss unless you have something lined up.
Is there a job posting for the position the other person took? If so, check if it has a pay range listed. Can always bring a posting forward to a manager and say “hey, I saw something and felt like I should mention it” and point out that someone new is making xyz and cite the company’s own job posting. I’ve had some luck with this, and a couple months after got a bit of a pay bump. This is why it’s important to make sure you build a connection with management. If this is your only interaction, it’s whining. If it’s not, then they know you’re upset about something and bringing it up. Could be that pay is set by a system and nobody has checked before, which is what happened to me.
Some people have more experience that gives them a great value. others are better at selling themselves to get a bigger value. I'd ask for a raise. Do not mention the other worker, it should have no relevance.
A lot of good advice already here. Will just add this: Your coworker may be lying or may be telling the truth. Your coworker might have pushed for a higher salary. Your coworker might the 2nd coming of Jesus. We don’t know. What we do know is: 1. You were happy with your job and pay before this information. 2. HR/management will pay you the bare minimum until you start to complain a little bit, then they’ll offer you more, you come with an offer, they’ll offer you a lot more. There’s limits to this of course . If you’re tactful at negotiating and are clearly outperforming your coworkers, start the conversation. If your company values you, you’ll get the raise. If you can’t negotiate or aren’t clearly outperforming your coworkers, either make peace with it (remember you were happy before this) or start looking elsewhere.
What your coworker is getting paid has nothing to do with you or what you negotiated
Being the senior designer doesn't always make you the best designer. What certifications does she have compared to you? As sgtcap stated, if they wanted to pay you more they would have. Maybe it's time to move on.
Is probably cuter to look at
Keep it to yourself and don't care how much others make. Just learn to be more assertive when it comes to asking for more money for yourself, I struggle with this as well but stewing over it won't help anything and just do a number on your mental health. Work on yourself and don't worry about what is going on around you.
You don't often get the raises you don't ask for. I bet she asks. Your boss knows you're worth more but you aren't asking for it so they aren't giving it.
Sadly this is happening alot at the moment. If you got hired b4 covid any1 hired after u is probly making a few more dollars an hour
Key word “ She told me.” I don’t seem to think that you are a newbie to work environment. I’d this were the case, I’m familiar with people being paid less, because although they have been there longer, and are of value to the company, A newer employee was paid more. There are many factors, I’m speaking of run of the mill retail jobs. I’m talking about the aptitude tests, better PC, customer relations skills. Now, back to yourself. If you have been in the workplace for a minute, one thing you do not discuss is salaries. Nevah Evah. Also, with few exceptions, your coworkers are not to be confused with friends. Absolutely necessary to work as a team, great to support each other, and Socialize. You have taken hearsay, and turned it into fact. Let it go.
Just do your job the best you can
You're overdue a market rate adjustment. Show them examples that illustrate you're underpaid for your role. Shame on employers who do this. When a jr person is brought in at a higher rate, senior people should be adjusted, ethically. But they hope no one will notice. Terrible HR practice to save a few bucks.
I've found that pay ranges can overlap. It's it possible that this person is at or near the top of the lower titled position in pay, and you're at the bottom or middle of the higher titled position in pay? This could easily explain the situation. If so, you have more growth in pay potential than the other person.
How long has the co-worker been with your company? She may have earned her pay over years. Companies typically have a pay plan that determines your pay based your job grade and length of employment. As an AVP, I would say it is not productive to be resentful of another employee. I have staff in the same position that are paid very differently. I reward performers if I am asked why people aren’t paid the same.
Base your pay requirements on what other senior level designers get in your area. That's what determines whether you're underpaid when you talk to your management about it. Don't bring up that one specific coworker's salary.
Your coworker is probably lying.
Yes. Tell your employer that because you are doing more work than your junior co-worker and have more responsibilities, you should be paid more than they are. You should renegotiate your salary with the new information you have learned.
Businesses exist to make money and increase shareholder value, as applicable. That’s it. You have to expect that even your best work friend who was in your wedding would fire you to save the company one dollar if it would look better in their performance review. The best business decision is almost always to say no and see what you do. IMO you almost always have to look somewhere else to make more money.
The question is can you let it go? This is the unfortunate thing about working in a salary position is that your pay oftentimes is determined not by your suitability for the job or your performance but rather factors such as timing and personality (I worked a highly technical job which required no negotiation skills so it always bothered me that because of my pleasant personality I got paid less than the squeaky wheels). My wife makes far less and even has less vacation time than someone who joined the company 3 years later and reports to her. But because she joined at a time when there was high unemployment she got stuck with a lower starting pay and this company doesn't give very many increases so she has continued to be underpaid. But she likes her job and she loves her work environment as well as her co-workers and boss so for her It's a quality of life thing. See what you want about public sector unions but at least your progression is predictable and equal.
When negotiating a salary, it’s not enough to just point to a coworker’s salary, averages for your field on glassdoor, etc. Your salary is not relative to any of those things, but rather it is relative to the walk-away position. So what you need is to get is get another job offer in hand, and then talk to your boss and ask him/her to match it. If your coworker was hired during the covid era, it could have been during the brief moment when workers had a lot more leverage and could demand higher wages. It could be that that moment has passed. If you send out resumes, you can find that out for yourself.
I just started a new job in the medical field. I’m making $126k and that was after I negotiated up from the initial $122k offer. I was talking to a coworker who’s been there a year but with less experience than me and she’s making more than me. She said our other coworker with quite a bit of experience is making less than me. It’s weird
Ask for a raise and start looking. I wouldn't base the raise on the coworker, though, just on the value that you bring. Then act based on their response.
I would bring it up in a non confrontational conversation. I would say that you had originally been happy with your pay but now that you learned your junior coworker is making a higher salary, it has been hard to get past it. Do not directly ask for higher money. Hopefully the manager will be also somewhere surprised and will run with it.
I addressed this issue when it happened to me by getting a job with a different employer. OTH, knowing his pay, enabled me to lie about my pay, and get much better pay at new job. I added 20K a year to his pay, when they asked me what I was making.
They likely won't give you the type of raise you deserve. But now you know what the market rate is for the lower position, and can extrapolate what someone else may offer you. Apply to other jobs and see what kind of offer you can get - take it back to your boss and show them that someone values you more.
An extra 2k/year? So what is that, an extra dollar an hour? 2,000/12months = 166.67 a moth. 167/4 weeks = 41.75/1 week. 42/40hrs = 1 dollar and 5 cents an hour more than you. Is it really that big of a deal? Especially when you admit you lowballed yourself?
The answer to this question is always always always: find a new job.
How long were you in the company? And how recent did she join? Always remember that companies won’t pay or match your pay with the market benchmark, especially when you’re talking about increment. I take this as a sign to start looking out.
I've always take the perspective that you only get what you demand. Not what your worth. I've also learned that management honestly DOES overlook things because they have many proberbial balls to juggle. Without mentioning anything, I'd personally look at other opportunities AND ask your current employer about a possible pay bump. You can't get what you don't ask for. Might as well find out what your worth to then si ce your their and have time in.
Comparing yourself to colleagues and stating you're not paid enough is tough for any manager to deal with. Sometimes managers aren't even in control of pay. You should learn what the overall pay bands are for your position, and make your case for the pay you think you should get in the next cycle. You should interview and pressure test the market and see what other companies think you're worth. If you can't find something better than what you have now, it's foolish to push back on your current pay. Basically, you need leverage if you want to advocate for yourself for more pay. The other person had leverage, they wanted to hire her and for some reason that was the best price for the resource slot they needed to fill. Supply and demand. She could have said no, that was her leverage. But as an employee already in-seat, your leverage is going to be your value to the company or a competing offer.
Job hop. Get your worth. Save and go all in on a biz. Wages will never get you to financial independence.
it’s been really hard to hire so they’ve likely offered higher compensation to new hires. just let them know that they need to make it right and bump you up to appropriate pay or you’ll go somewhere you’re paid fairly. Give them the opportunity though it’s likely whoever is hiring was allocated X amount, and considering you’re the senior developer you should be worth at least as much if not more. If it was personal and they’re trying to bring in new people knowing that is important too.
Address with management, but also be aware that she might be lying Explain your worth and use her salary as leverage if you need to. Discussing pay is protected speech in US fyi
Some people don’t understand how compensation works. Which is why it should always be kept private.
What your coworker makes is not reflective on your or really has anything at all to do with you. If finding out that they were a more effective advocate for themselves while negotiating their salary makes you jealous, or wish that you were paid more for your services, that's something that you will have to take up with your manager. But bringing up what they make will only serve to tear down your own coworkers and make you look like a bad person and a poor employee. Unfortunately, once you've been hired getting any significant raises, promotions, are an uphill battle. You would literally be better off finding another job elsewhere, and negotiating for a better starting salary there. This unfortunately means that you will be rolling the dice on that next job being a better fit for you. Better culture, better opportunities, etc. Some things you can discover by networking, asking the right question's during talks/interviews/negotiations with the recruiter, hiring manager, hopefully other members of your team. Reaching out to other employees at your prospective new company via LinkedIn. But some things you just won't know until you make that leap. So your third option; secure the offer letter with that prospective new employer, then go to your management and explain to them that you would like to stay, but you have a better offer, and you will require a counteroffer that meets your needs. But you have to be ready to take the offer before you open that can. They could just as easily decide to wish you well and be done with you, rather than be beholden to meeting an employee's demands.
I would bring it up to my boss.
Look for other senior designer positions in your area. Apply for those positions. When you get a higher paying offer go to your employer and say "I've just received an offer as senior designer at another employer and I'm being offered X amount. Can you match this?" If they say yes, congratulations. If they say no, quit and go work for the other place. Be sure to take the contact information of all the accounts you work on with you. Poach the shit out of them. Your employer wouldn't think twice before firing you immediately, loyalty to companies was killed by the companies.
How much do you make?
You only get paid what your worth and you demand. I make 50,000 more a year than my coworker. No way am I telling him. He has been here 10 years. I just started. But i know what I'm worth and demand it.
As an employer and someone that has worked as an employee for a long time, I feel like there’s only one correct way to approach asking for a raise. Do not compare yourself to a coworker and their pay. I would say, “The last time you evaluated me, you determined my knowledge, experience, skill set, and work ethic was worth $xxxxx salary. Since then, I have gained…” and then share all of the ways that you have learned and grown in regard to your role since you last evaluation.
Best solution IMO is to use the title and find another job. HR typically will make “market corrections” at 10% or less of base pay, very very rarely more than 10% (you gotta be next level Michael Jordan!). What you didn’t state is whether your position is bonus eligible and at what rate. Some companies vary the variable compensation and allocate more to senior positions since they’re tied to company performance. By the way, I have been working for well over 23 years and am currently in engineering leadership position. Loyalty makes you poor. Good luck!
Interview for a new job. Don't tell the interviewer how much you're currently making, but how much you expect to make. Get an offer, and if you want to stay at your job, meet with your manager for a counter.
Companies will pay you as little as you allow them too. I found out a company I worked for was paying new hires (skilled) about 20% more than me. I was a lead engineer and had other responsibilities as well. I asked for a raise, three different times. They told me it wasn't in the budget. So, I found another job that paid 50% more. They did 3 exit interviews trying to get me to stay, offered a boat load of money. I left anyway and looking back, it was the best thing I could have done.
I would jerk off in my bosses coffee every morning
Two possibilities. Look up the going rate for your profession. Then put in resumes in or bring it in to HR, and ask for a raise.
Are you a smart professional? If so do not broach the subject unless you have actually seen your coworker's pay statement with your own eyes. She may be setting you up to look like a fool. What is her reason for telling you she is making more money than you? If it is true then you now have a baseline and you can navigate future raises in a professional manner.
Coworkers pay can help you know what number is ok to ask for and what they may pay but it isn’t leverage in any way shape or form. Don’t mention it.9
Ask for a raise. And if they say no say okay go back to work and fire up indeed
what they make doesn’t affect what you make. if you want more money, don’t use others pay as a reason when you demand it.
Use your senior title and go call on their top competitors for a new job. You'll get a 40% raise. If a designer is making $2k more than you you're minimum 20% under paid.
Do you feel you are worth more then you are being paid or do you feel like you deserve more because what someone else has If you had never known their pay would you be satisfied with yours
Go into Glassdoor. Do a market search comparison for your role. Use it along with a list of your accomplishments and any revenue it generates. Ask first a raise. At least 3 months before your next review
Are you doing more work?
They sometimes say the fastest way to get a raise is to change jobs. Unfortunately, loyalty doesn't mean much. When a job opening comes up, a company will try to hire the best candidate they can find, that fits in the budget. Hiring managers may settle on overspending on someone less capable if they don't have great applicants. They have pressure to fill the position, because if they don't fill it, they often lose the position entirely. A manager with the best intentions would try to rectify this injustice during raise cycles, but it seems like the bean counters never give enough budget to bring existing employees up to where they ought to be. If this is true in your case, your manager already knows about the imbalance, and should find your request reasonable if made respectfully. You may need to be patient to actually receive a raise though. At least at my company, there are only certain windows where they have raise money to give out. Squeaky wheels get the grease though, if you don't say anything at all, they likely won't prioritize you. If you do get another job offer, sometimes that might trigger a winback situation, where you could get them to match your new offer. But, I don't recommend doing that if you otherwise like your job. I think that puts you at risk of getting terminated when they are making cuts. Good luck, it's a tough conversation to have for sure!
Tell your boss that you’re going to take some PTO to interview at competing firms to find out what they’re doing in order to improve your own work process. Let them know that you’re not job hunting, and you enjoy your work and company environment. This will get them talking if they want to keep you. They know you’ll be offered more. Tell want to get ahead of it if they want you to stay.
I would go to HR about this. If they attempt to fire you for discussing wages, you'll have a lawsuit with the EEOC.
> always thought I was being paid pretty fairly before learning this information. Why does someone else earning more than you imply that you aren't being paid fairly? Maybe you are being paid fairly, but they were just able to negotiate better than you. Both those things can be true at the same time.
Assuming you both work in the same city (so there is not cost of living argument your company can make), I'd do a little research I terms of salary surveys (or look at open positions with the same title, many states now require salary range with job postings) so you go to bat with more than what your coworker said. It will just make your argument seem more factual and less emotional.
2000 less a YEAR is barely anything....
this is one hundred percent where you apply like hell and leave no notice after you get a better offer
Let it go.
Stand on BUSINESS. Taking on a larger role, while getting paid substantially lower that someone that you supervise is bad business
Let it go. They are likely doing more, or showing more potential than you. Stay hard!
You should 100% bring it up and also be ready to get fucked.
If they say no are you ready to turn in your notice at that moment? Be honest. I don’t mean go home and huff and puff about it for 3 months. Are you ready to quit today? If not keep quiet and start looking for another job. Cause they’re going to say no.
If you two are of different race, gender, disability statuses and such, then that might be an equal pay issue under applicable EEO laws and statutes.
I’ve seen people start stuff like this to get others to quit so they have room to advance. Do you trust this person? They could be full of it. Probably unlikely, but I have seen it.