how should I respond when employees complain about financial stress? by Alison Green on February 7, 2023 A reader writes: I am the director of a nonprofit with a small team: I have five direct reports. I was a coworker to all of these individuals for years before being promoted and becoming their boss, and as a result I have — and continue to have — very close relationships with them. Since […] Read the full article →
how honest can I be with recruiters that money is the only reason I want to leave my current job? by Alison Green on January 24, 2023 A reader writes: Recently I’ve been approached by quite a few recruiters. Generally I brush them off as I truly enjoy my job and my coworkers, and even my manager isn’t half bad. Last year the company offered its traditional low raise despite high inflation, constant emails about new C-suite executives and positions created, and […] Read the full article →
my company will only give me a raise if I quit first by Alison Green on November 16, 2022 A reader writes: I work for a small company within a very niche field. The owner has been running it for decades and is an expert at this craft, and is in very high demand. The service the company offers is so specialized that the job takes about six months to a year of training, […] Read the full article →
how can I get recruiters to just tell me the job’s salary from the start? by Alison Green on November 10, 2022 A reader writes: I am not currently job hunting but am interested in keeping my ear to the ground on salaries across my industry. I frequently receive LinkedIn messages from recruiters with possible job opportunities and an invitation to have a phone call to discuss. Every time, I respond with, “To make sure we’re in […] Read the full article →
my manager told me that my male coworkers earn $40-60K more than I do by Alison Green on November 7, 2022 A reader writes: Last week I accepted a job offer with a new company, where my base salary will be 50% more than I currently make. This is a huge pay increase! And it is also an exciting opportunity! I told my current manager the news today. To my great surprise, not only did they […] Read the full article →
a real-life salary negotiation, with emails by Alison Green on August 16, 2022 A reader writes: I wanted to share my success story with negotiating a higher salary for a job offer I received. I work in the social services/addiction/mental health field. I’ve worked in this field for 11 years. I was working as a front-line supervisor for a program for adults who had major mental illnesses when […] Read the full article →
should employees be paid differently based on where they live? by Alison Green on August 4, 2022 It’s the Thursday “ask the readers” question. A reader writes: I’m curious about your thoughts on a question some of the smartest people I know fundamentally cannot agree on: should a salary be based on the value of the labor, or the subsistence of the laborer? For context, I recently left my last job after […] Read the full article →
should you always ask for the top of the salary range? by Alison Green on July 26, 2022 A reader writes: I work in an expensive city with a thriving job market, and I am in the middle of a job search/hiring process, leaving a pretty severely underpaid job. Luckily, this potential new position has a salary range posted in the job listing. The range is about $10,000. My current job salary is […] Read the full article →
how to ask about salary when you’re invited to interview by Alison Green on July 14, 2022 A reader writes: I have been applying for a few jobs and have had interviews. It seems that it takes some time getting through the interview process before salary expectations are discussed. More often than not, within my field at least, the salary ranges for the position responsibilities and requirements are notoriously low. I don’t […] Read the full article →
should employees have to ask for a raise? by Alison Green on June 6, 2022 A reader writes: I recently found myself in a disagreement about an issue with a fellow manager: Should an employee have to ask in order to get a raise? I’ve always felt it’s incredibly important for employees to ask for the raises they want. Ideally, that means setting a meeting with me and coming prepared […] Read the full article →