I work in AML compliance sector for a global financial company and I have been in my current role for 3 years now.
My pay is just 50k which I believe is well below the market rate for this experience and my skills. The performance review is coming after few months so I am wondering what is best tactic to ask for about 10k pay rise.
What could I do to justify I am underpaid?
Your best shot of a pay rise is having a history of strong, positive, appraisals. Coupled with a few years of weak ass pay rises. And clarity that you're underpaid relative to market average.
If you are honest with yourself and fail at any of those three I'd say you have no chance. If you do nail them then I'd simply, unemotionally, ask as to what you need to do to earn additional money and depending on how serious you want it, make it clear that you believe yourself to be undervalued and that you're disappointed that the company doesn't appreciate you correctly.
My team are mainly Gen Y and if I have a frustration its that they equate time served in a role as deserving of pay rises rather than quality of work provided.
Equally if you're ace at your job and you have to drag a pay rise outta them then you should question whether you're in the right place anyway. Good bosses recognise and reward talent.
One of my colleagues would involve himself in critical projects, and at a critical time would threaten to quit unless he got paid $xxxx more… Worked twice… Then got told to jump in the lake!
Vote with your feet. If you are really worth more than what they are paying a competitor should be keen to snap you up. Their loss will be yours (and your new employer's) gain. If you aren't prepared to move then really, where's the incentive for an employer to pay more. The big incentive to pay more is to retain key staff and avoid the cost of having to recruit/train new staff, if you know current staff are going nowhere why pay them more to do the same work.
This, end of story. Listen to the podcast. http://www.manager-tools.com/2014/05/how-ask-a-raise-making-…
See what they offer in your review or raise the question.
Sometimes loyalty only goes so far and you have to move companies to keep moving up the ladder.
You might want to contact the Financial Services Union (http://www.fsunion.org.au/Default.aspx) to seek advice/information on what salary you should be expecting given your experience/skills. They will probably provide some free information over the phone even if you are not a member.
You can buy industry recognised reports that show what people in your industry/role are paid on average etc and then ask to be bought up to standard. This is how I received my most significant payrise. But remember this needs to be coupled with good performance reviews and proof that your worth the money. Big no no's would be to talk about anyone else and their performance and pay. It needs to be all about you, why you deserve to be bought up to the average and why the company should invest in your further development.
Negotiate to have 1 hour per work day to review ozbargain. At $24 per hour of viewing pleasure it is equivalent to an instant $6200 annual pay rise.*
*my logic may be flawed so negotiate with caution.
At least double that, if you factor in the OzBargain savings you make in that time!
Very valuable feedback from everyone.
Thank you!
Does asking for a pay rise ever create any animosity between boss and employee regardless if it was accepted or rejected?
Depends on the transparency. If the Employee has a legit claim and the boss legit reason why he can't it should be fine between the 2, doesnt make the employee happy with the sitation but should impact the relationship. If the Employee doesnt have a legit claim and rejected it should be evident, if the boss doesnt have a legit denial then yes there will be drama, if the boss accepts it with a legit claim then he is an idiot and I want him/her as my boss.
Always reference your current total on target package (incude superannuation, healthcare, other benefits etc.) to the market salary for the role. Saying you need an extra 10K because you want to buy a house, car, have extra expenses etc. is not your employer's concern. The reference point means what other people are being paid for the same role in other - comparable - companies.
Try researching online and get a few figures of the general on target earnings. Most HR departments have documents with this information in it but they are unlikely to divulge that information - but it doesn't hurt to ask. To buy that information is very expensive though and the data research companies usually only sell it to other companies.
Your company may have a policy that pays 75% quartile for example, which means 75% of the market salary for the role. Big companies can do this as they can find it easier to attract employees and generally there are more opportunities for career growth which can accelerate earnings long term better than a short time pay rise in a company with limited opportunities.
If the reference salary values are on par with market then it's difficult to argue you should be paid more than your peers, unless you are way way better - for example you are a fund manager outperforming or a chef with 2 hats etc. but you could ask for opportunities to take on more responsibility which pushes you into a role with a higher on target earning (based on your research) and then 6 months/ 9 months later use the reference to market to negotiate a pay rise. Also upskill and obtain awareness of the outside market e.g. read the Economist, Harvard Business Review, Business Week, and other relevant magazines for your industry.
Recruitment companies are good sources of market data and it shouldn't hurt to ask for market salaries based on your skills. There may be other career opportunities that come up with your current skillset.
And makes sure your having fun - whatever you do. Life isn't all about money after all.
I have already some search and median pay for my role based on my current experience is $67,500 excluding super.
So is it ok to ask for 13K rise to make it market competitive rate?
Show that you're worth the extra money via your knowledge etc.
Or you can apply and get another job and tell them. If they want to keep you, they'll match the offer.