FAQ- Salary/ Pay Rise         

Frequently asked questions- Salary/ Pay Rise:

In addition to our free FAQ & ASK US feature, we also offer a coaching service for a fee. This is especially helpful if you require us to work with you to help get a pay rise, for salary negotiation for a new job.... etc. See our salary negotiation & pay rise coaching & consulting  page.

Question: Every time I ask my boss for a pay rise, he only brings up minor mistakes I have made and ignores my major achievements. Any suggestions?

Answer:  This is not uncommon. Ask your boss to list to you what will qualify you for a pay rise next time, what you need to work on and what the timeframe is. If he lists these minor mistakes, it would appear that they are important to your boss and you would need to work on them. If he doesn't list these minor mistakes, you can inquire why he hasn't. Next time the pay rise come up, bring up the list in the meeting & go over each item with him/ her. This would make it harder for the boss to refuse the pay rise, if you qualify based on the list. 

Question: I have been offered a promotion in my present company to a managers role. But I have to relocate to London which is an area I don't know. What things should I ask for and expect if I accept the position? I.e. relocation pay, time to find somewhere to live etc in terms of negotiating pay what things should I be asking in terms of moving to a more expensive area?

Answer: It really depends on the company. Some companies will offer you paid accommodation for a number of weeks & paid time off to find a suitable place to live. They'll also pay a certain amount to cover moving your furniture or they will arrange and pay a moving company to do so. We suggest you negotiate to get this assistance.

As far as your salary, compare the cost of living in your city with that of London & ask for an amount to compensate you for the difference. Obviously you need to negotiate & be flexible. Also, see our  Salary Negotiation Example

Question: I have accepted several additional responsibilities with my current employer & I was asked to write a salary increase request letter to justify the salary increase. Can you give me some tips?

Answer:  

• You probably could have negotiated a higher increase if you finalized the salary increase prior to accepting. 

• Sounds like your manager may want a salary increase request letter to show to his/ her manager or just wants it for the record. 

• In your justification, explain the additional value you bring to the company, your achievements with the company so far ... etc. 

• We suggest being firm, by using words like "I deserve so & so" or I want this higher pay because I have earned it & I deserve it" and do not use words like "I'd like" or "I hope"....  

• We also suggest your justification be in bullet points. 

Question: I am applying for jobs online that ask for 'desired salary'. Is it a good idea to indicate what I'd like to make? 

Answer:  It is best to indicate that your salary expectations are negotiable.

Question: After getting an offer from another company, my current employer offered me 5% more than the offer I got. I don't know what to do. Do I negotiate with the other company or do I accept my current employer's higher offer?

Answer: 

First you should evaluate & compare other factors such as career paths, the companies, the actual jobs...etc.

Questions that come to mind: If you are worth that much more, why didn't your current employer pay you accordingly before you got the other offer? So you had to force them to pay you more! How will they treat you after this & in the future?

You can tell the other company that you have a higher offer from your company BUT it could backfire, as they may think, if they give you more, you may go back to your current employer & ask for more... etc. So be very careful if you decide to negotiate further with the other company. 

The safest option would be to tell the other company that you decided to accept their offer (assuming you want to do this), but see if they can improve the offer as your current company has offered you more, but make it clear that you have no intention of staying with your current employer (again assuming you don't intend to stay with your current employer).

Question: How do I write a pay rise request letter and how much should I ask for?

Answer: 

• A pay rise or pay raise request  is usually asked for or requested by setting up a meeting with your immediate manager and by discussing the pay rise in the meeting.

• So unless you were asked for a letter, which is rare, you usually don't need to write a pay rise request letter.
• If you need to write a pay rise request letter, follow the general tips outlined in our Pay Rise Tips. There is no standard method for a pay rise. 
• Regarding how much to ask for, that really depends job market conditions, your level of expertise in your field and also depends on how much you are confident you are worth to your employer. If you don't ask, the boss may simply give you a small pay rise and consider you would be happy with that. It is always best to ask for more than you are expecting and then negotiate, because you rarely get exactly the pay rise that you ask for.

Also see our other FAQ categories:

FAQ- Career

FAQ-Job Search

FAQ- Resume/ CV