Salary Negotiations

[*lee-lee*]

as some may recall, i am going to be interviewing this week for a new job. the interview is an entire day, with 7 different people. when i initially spoke with the HR Manager, she asked what my salary requirements were i gave her a number a few thousand dollars more than i currently make. she didn't hesitate at all so of course now i'm doubting myself. i checked a few websites where you can estimate what your salary should be based on job description and location.

it appears i underestimated by at least $10k!! the city/state i'd be working in has a higher cost of living than were i will actually be living but there's a decent chance we could move there at some point. (we live right on the state border so the commute is about 25-30 miles.)

is it enough to just say that i under-estimated the market in the city and i need X amount for salary? i'm moving from a very small area so the cost of living is obviously lower there than my new area.

[Nancym]

I think you need to. You wouldn't want to take a job and work it knowing you were making vastly less than other people. If it means you don't get the job, then so be it, but that'd be better than getting locked in for less than you should be paid.

[gfp]

I think you need to. You wouldn't want to take a job and work it knowing you were making vastly less than other people. If it means you don't get the job, then so be it, but that'd be better than getting locked in for less than you should be paid.

Can't really fault that....

Do you REALLY want the job? Is it that good or were you just casting out?

Even with the cost of living are you underpaid now? Could you just get another job on say 5k more without moving?

[tarnalberry]

just be upfront about it. say, "based on additional research on the median price of jobs of this type in this area, I believe we should start salary negotiations in this range". it's not like HR doesn't do *exactly* the same thing, only with the hopes of you putting out a lower number first. (if you're asked, 'why the change in story?', say "I did more research to better understand the relative value of the work you're asking me to do." totally fair, totally the right thing to do.)

realize, however, some companies don't negotiate much, for a number of spots. when I hired in to "a very large aerospace corporation prevalent across the company", I had a competing offer from a competing aerospace corporation. I asked the first one to match it - it literally would have been a 1.02% increase, *well* under four figures since I was just coming out of college. they said no, that wasn't how they worked new hires. so, your mileage may vary on salary negotiations. doesn't mean you can't have the job - I asked, they said no, and due to a number of factors, I went to work their anyway.

[*lee-lee*]

Do you REALLY want the job? Is it that good or were you just casting out?

Even with the cost of living are you underpaid now? Could you just get another job on say 5k more without moving?

from the job description and what i know about the company, yes i REALLY want the job! it's exactly what i'm doing now but better. my field is hard to get into and i've been looking my immediate area for about a month now without finding a single job worth applying for. that's why i expanded the search. that said, i'm not willing to accept the job if i'm being grossly underpaid.

oh and according to the salary estimator, i'm underpaid at my current job. geesh, apparently i can't negotiate to save my life!

just be upfront about it. say, "based on additional research on the median price of jobs of this type in this area, I believe we should start salary negotiations in this range". it's not like HR doesn't do *exactly* the same thing, only with the hopes of you putting out a lower number first. (if you're asked, 'why the change in story?', say "I did more research to better understand the relative value of the work you're asking me to do." totally fair, totally the right thing to do.)

this is just what i was looking for...i need some verbiage to broach the subject. i'm always afraid of losing the offer completely but i guess the worst they can say is "no, this is the salary. take it or leave it." ...right???

[Tim-n-VA]

I will say that when I've been on the other side of that that it can look weird if the prospective employee keeps changing his/her requirements. Don't they know what they want?

On the other hand, a low salary is long term trap. All future pay raises, etc. are most likely going to be based on applying a percentage to your current salary.

You need to get in the correct salary range but be careful how you present this. The words offered above could be a good approach.

Another thing to consider is benefits. I was once offered a higher salary but different 401K matching rules that would have put me at a net cut in compensation.