How much you’ll get paid for your efforts and experience is paramount in your mind when you interview for a new job. Yet, negotiating a salary is a delicate subject that can often feel like a dance. You step forward and let the employer know your value, they step back and give you a package that doesn’t really meet your needs. But a few more swirls around, and you finally reach an agreement.
Except for times when the employer clumsily smashes your toes and proposes a wage so ridiculous, you simply have to decline. That’s what happened to this TikToker who recently shared a video about her own disappointing job offer that immediately went viral. Jessica, who goes under the handle @jessthewhooty, received an offer letter from a company she was interviewing for that would not justify her leaving her current one. Or, as she put it, “the pay was garbage”.
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So the woman decided to take the lead and ask for higher rates. But what she didn’t expect was for HR to return with such a minor pay increase, it almost didn’t make any difference. The clip has sparked a discussion about living wages in the comments, as well as inspired people to come forward with their experiences. Read on to find out how the story unfolded, and share your takes with us right below!
Recently, a TikToker went viral for declining a job offer because the company didn’t offer her high enough pay
Image credits: jessthewhooty
After explaining that the wage in the original offer “was garbage”, she asked for higher rates
But when the company sent the increased offer, it was only 33 cents higher
Image credits: jessthewhooty
Image credits: jessthewhooty
At the time of writing, Jessica’s video has received nearly 57k views, as fellow TikTok users appreciated her sharing her experience. Many people applauded the woman in the comments for standing up for herself and refusing to accept an offer that, as she put it, “is not a livable wage.” Moreover, some TikTokers even pointed out that by proposing such a small bump in pay, the company chooses to ignore the soaring inflation that’s looming over workers’ heads right now.
Even though the cost of living in the U.S. likely cooled in July as the consumer price index, a broad-based measure of prices for goods and services (gas, food, medical care, and more), climbed 8.5 percent. Compared with 9.1 percent the prior month, it’s a bigger slowdown than economists had predicted. Plus, a recent report from Gallagher surveying over 4k organizations across the country stated that compensation has become key leverage for attracting and keeping employees on board. In 2022, 78% of employers said they are enhancing base salary “up to 6 percentage points from last year.” However, these wage boosts aren’t enough to keep pace with rising living costs.
If your recent job offer or a raise you fought so hard to receive didn’t match inflation, it’s time to pause for a moment and consider what actions could help you improve your situation. To learn more about salary negotiations, we reached out to Sunny Patel, a UK-based career-change coach aiming to help professionals find careers that excite them. “Many of us believe that we have to continuously prove ourselves to a certain level before we can possibly be worth a certain salary. In reality, we’d do well to focus on a healthier belief — our time is worth money,” he told Bored Panda.
In today’s society, there’s still a dash of stigma when it comes to pay transparency. But unfortunately, it often benefits the companies who find ways to pay people less than they deserve. Patel pointed out that while there are myriads of reasons talking about your salary can feel uncomfortable, it’s important to know the elements you should pay attention to.
“When negotiating for an increase, focus purely on the fact that you have grown in the role and developed as a person (the role may have grown too). In these scenarios, how can it be unreasonable to at least ask for an increase?”
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“When walking into a new role, I would always negotiate from the top down, instead of suggesting you want a randomly selected value that’s in the range for the role,” the career coach continued. “Explain that you’re applying because you know you can do the role, and therefore if they wish to offer you lower than the top of the salary range, then you’d be willing to discuss as long as they can explain why you don’t hit the criteria for that top value.”
You can watch the full video right over here
@jessthewhooty STOP ACCEPTING LOW OFFERS JUST TO BE EMPLOYED! They have to pay more if we all say NO to low wages! #paymemore #livablewages #communism #socialism #sayno #lowwages ♬ original sound – JessTheWhooty
Patel pointed out that most people tend to accept the salary offered without negotiating first. However, this isn’t wise. “It gives away all power to the organization or hiring manager. This whole process is a two-way process, to ascertain whether or not things make sense to both parties, don’t lose sight of this. Have your figure in mind, and stand firm,” he said. “Quick tip, when asked, state your figure and remain silent until they break the silence.”
When it comes to the most common and important methods to have in mind when negotiating a salary, Patel told us, “If an organization offers X, it’s because the work performed by the postholder is worth Y to their business. Y is always greater than X, otherwise, they wouldn’t be hiring.”
The other factor to consider is that if you already know the pay you need to earn to feel valued, make that clear. “I once hired a Trainer who asked for close to £15k ($18.3k) over the organization’s desired ceiling for the role, but they were absolutely the best person for the role. I knew they could be a great asset. Before I could respond to their figure, they said, ‘that’s what it would take for me to feel valued’ — I had a difficult conversation with the CEO, and I hired them on their desired salary. It was a great hire and I’ll always be happy about it,” Patel shared his experience.
The career coach asked you to stay realistic, but remember to do the math and stick to your figure. “It’s important to know what you need to earn, want to earn and the minimum it would take to feel valued.”
“As for negotiations to secure a pay increase, go in well prepared and act as if you’re talking to people who don’t know you, do not assume that because they (possibly) know what you do and how good you are, that it should be simple. Explain clearly what has changed and why you think it is worth more, as for how much more, don’t forget to state the figure and then remain silent until they speak,” Patel concluded.
The clip sparked an important debate online, here’s what people had to say
The post Woman Shames Company Who Increased Their Offer By Just 33 Cents After She Explained Why She Can’t Take Such A Low Offer first appeared on Bored Panda.
Source: boredpanda.com