Negotiating your salary

[Petro-Sooner]

In May the company I am with is going to offer me a full time deal. Being that this will be my first job in which I will receive a salary I have never had the opportunity to negotiate what I will make. I have done some research and have an idea of the range in which people in my position can expect. IF the offer is lower than what I think it should be, whats the proper way or proper etiquitte to negotiate. Besides laughing.

[StoopTroup]

If your scared to talk money after being offered a job your making a mistake IMO. If you've shown your worth and your ability to be dependable you should be open to negoiate with them.

You could always ask about a review / raise after 6 months of full-time service. If I'm hiring though...it's my job to get you as cheap as I can.

[Petro-Sooner]

Not scared about it. Just have never done it before.

[mdklatt]

Show some cleavage.

[StoopTroup]

Try a bribe. ;)

[Mongo]

Who is the job with? What is the job your going for?

And yes, perking up your boobs for the meeting will always help.

[SCOUT]

Are you currently contracting (1099) with this company? If you are, you can use your contract rate to back in to a full time salary.

When I negotiate a contract rate, I typically will increase the rate to cover their taxes, benefits, 401(k), vacation, and job security. Depending on the perks and they offer etc., it usually comes to 30-40%.

[frankensooner]

Ask a dollar under the top possible salary. Show them you are willing to be flexible. Truthfully, you don't know what you will get unless you are willing to ask for it.

[Petro-Sooner]

I'm with a small company in OKC. Over time they want to train me to be a full fledged geologist. Without a masters its pretty difficult to find a job that wants you to step right into this position. I've learned a lot in the past two years but I know there is a lot more out there to grasp on all sides of the biz. Geology, land and engineering. In may I'll finish with a geography and petroleum geology degree. I think I do good work and hope they see the same.

I'm trying to get rid of my 'boobs" :D

[Petro-Sooner]

Are you currently contracting (1099) with this company? If you are, you can use your contract rate to back in to a full time salary.

When I negotiate a contract rate, I typically will increase the rate to cover their taxes, benefits, 401(k), vacation, and job security. Depending on the perks and they offer etc., it usually comes to 30-40%.


I'm currently paid hourly.

[yermom]

my theory is that whoever comes up with a number first loses :D

i negotiated about 10% over what i was first offered on my job, but that was mostly because i knew i wouldn't get a raise for a while

[Mjcpr]

my theory is that whoever comes up with a number first loses :D

i negotiated about 10% over what i was first offered on my job, but that was mostly because i knew i wouldn't get a raise for a while

It's easy to see why.

:D

[yermom]

heh

getting a raise around here is worse than pulling teeth. heck i didn't even get a cost of living raise the first 2 years

[SCOUT]

I'm currently paid hourly.
I see. In that case, I would continue to do the research to find what the market is paying. Salary.com can give you a very rough estimate although I find their numbers to typically be low.

You can also search careerbuilder.com and Monster.com for similar job postings and see what they are paying.

Once you have a general idea you are in good shape. When they make an offer you will already know if it is in the right ballpark. Ask about benefits, bonuses and additional perks so you are considering their total compensation.

If it is below where you think it should be, I would ask if they have any flexibility. A lot of times employers will authorize a range for a position. It is their goal to pay as little as possible, but they can increase the offer to avoid losing you as a candidate.

If their offer is just off the charts low you should consider just how much you want to work there.

[mrowl]

my theory is that whoever comes up with a number first loses :D

agree, when that "how much do you want" question comes up, I always said "what are you offering"

[mdklatt]

getting a raise around here is worse than pulling teeth.


At least you've you got hard funding.

What really ****ed me off was a few years ago when pay increases for soft funded people were delayed along with the raises for hard funded people--even though the money was in our grants. We never got payed retroactively, either. :mad:

[StoopTroup]

What ever they offer you...tell them it's quite a bit less than Trump is offering you for position in one of his companies. Then tell them that his hair scares you so badly that you'd be willing to take a little less than what he offered you just due to the hair factor.

If they say your crazy....tell them you'd be glad to let them think it over for a day or two because you believe in giving folks second chances.

[Petro-Sooner]

I have seen a couple publications that were great. divide it up whether or not you have a bachalors, master, Phd. Then by 0-2, 3-5, ect. years experience and then a low, medium, high pay range. So I pretty much know how much I'm worth. Thanks guys for the help.

[Petro-Sooner]

Also, this may not be the right thing to do but should I at least have a copy of articles saying how much I should be worth on me the day this all goes down? I dont think they are going to try and screw me, I just want to be totally prepared in case what ever should come up, I know what to do. Thats all.

[yermom]

i'm not sure if having it on paper is necessary, but i'd have it in my head

[StoopTroup]

Petro...

Will this job get you the experience you need for a future in this industry?

If so, I wouldn't be to disappointed if you weren't offered a mid-range salary.

If it's a dead end type of situation...you might want to look around IMO.

[Petro-Sooner]

Yes! After you have your degree its all about experience. From what I have learned from being here is that I should prolly expect the low end. This is why I posted the thread. I just hope its not on the too low end. I'm wondering if I should at the very least ask for the mid range pay.

This wont be a dead end deal. That would be like staying a geo-tech. When I graduate I will still do tech work but over time from what I have taken away they will add different projects to mold me into what the other full geologists do ever day. At least thats the way I understand it. I've still have one more semester but I want to start asking around and get a feel on how others have handled their paticular situation.

[Sooner Born Sooner Bred]

Does the salary have a range? For example, if the salary range is $20,000 to $60,000, they are probably expecting a person to work their way up to getting higher than $40,000. At my company, you start out below the midpoint, but the goal is to get everyone to the midpoint.

You might be better off (if the salary was equitable to similar organizations) to tell them you want somewhere between the low number and the middle number.

[BajaOklahoma]

Just be able to back up what you say.
My husband was dealing with this last month. They offered a slight salary increase (his former boss was let go), way below what the former boss guy made. My husband countered with an amount that equal to what he was offered last summer by a competitor. They called him on it and wanted to verify it - which they could. So they settled for the midpoint of the two - which happened to be what old boss guy made. :) That was a fair price.
And the job he was offered last summer? He didn't take it because he knew the company was going to be sold and he would be out looking again. Know the local market.

[OUinFLA]

In May the company I am with is going to offer me a full time deal. Being that this will be my first job in which I will receive a salary I have never had the opportunity to negotiate what I will make. I have done some research and have an idea of the range in which people in my position can expect. IF the offer is lower than what I think it should be, whats the proper way or proper etiquitte to negotiate. Besides laughing.

You can always respond with the tried and true SO response.

**** off dip ****

[SoonerBorn68]

I have seen a couple publications that were great. divide it up whether or not you have a bachalors, master, Phd. Then by 0-2, 3-5, ect. years experience and then a low, medium, high pay range. So I pretty much know how much I'm worth. Thanks guys for the help.

You'd make more $ as an MWD, seriously. Ask Mongo. ;)

[TexasLidig8r]

Petro... perhaps instead of getting into an exhaustive dollar and cents argument.. when asked what do you want, you talk about what you bring to the company, and how the company benefits from you.

You emphasize it's not as if they are pulling in someone fresh from the streets..they know the quality of your work and are obviously happy with it or else they would not be talking a salaried position.

You emphasize that the company will actually be saving money not having to start a training program from the start with a new employee so both the company and you, are much more productive from the start.

You emphasize that there is tremendous upside in that you are obtaining the expected degree, at your own expense, and the company is not on the financial hook for this.

You emphasize that you have shown your loyalty and as such, the company is obtaining a loyal, committed employee.

You tell them that these are all intangibles that logically have some financial value... and as a result, factoring in some remuneration for those factors would result in a mutually beneficial salary in the mid to high level of the range of salaries.