salary

Everything you need to know about salary — how to figure out what you should be earning, how to negotiate it, what to do if you’re lowballed, and much more.

can I threaten legal action to get a better job offer?

A reader writes: TLDR: I was given a lowball job offer. I said it was less than my previous total comp, which it was. I was asked my previous salary and, stupidly, gave it. Asking salary history is illegal in the nearest city and that may or may not cover me. Can I use the […]

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a real-life salary negotiation success story

A salary negotiation success story from a reader: In all the years I’ve been reading your column, I have never ever managed to get the gumption up to negotiate salary. I was laid off in February (just after closing on a house!) so I knew I’d need to get something quick. Severance didn’t last long […]

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my coworkers want me to turn down my raise

A reader writes: I work for a company with about 30 employees. We used to have five people in owner/management roles and things ran pretty well, but four left in the last year mostly due to the difficult personality of the remaining manager, Mo. Mo became the sole owner but did not want to pick […]

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here’s a real-life example of an email asking for a raise

I recently received this letter from a reader: I’m a long-time reader of your site. I’ve got several part-time jobs — some of which I’ve been with for a very long time, and I’ve known that I was very underpaid relative to the skills I bring. And I finally reached the point where I was ready […]

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I just found out I’m seriously underpaid — now what?

A reader writes: I think I need a reality check because I just don’t know how I should be feeling about this. I work for a very large company (100,000+ employees). I started nine years ago as an intern and have been promoted twice since then. I’ve been considered a top performer, earned a stellar […]

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how to ask for a raise (because you need to)

I’m regularly dismayed by how many people — particularly women — tell me they’ve gone their entire careers without ever asking for a raise. They haven’t done it because they feel awkward bringing it up, or aren’t sure how to find an opening to do it, or because they’re afraid they’ll sound greedy or like […]

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