ALT-2 Why People think their Salaries should be Increased
One of the most frequent complaints you will hear in an office is without a doubt: "I am underpaid. I really should earn more!" So, are we all underpaid, or why do people think their salaries should be increased?
Well, I put together the top 7 reasons I came across throughout my career as to why people think they should be paid more and will then look into these reasons in some more detail.
Reason 1: I have been in the company for 5, 10, 20 years and still only earn pennies. I should be rewarded for my loyalty.
Reason 2: I am older than my colleague, so I surely should earn more.
Reason 3: Given the hours I am working and all the unpaid overtime, I really deserve more money.
Reason 4: I work so hard and get much more work done in a day than my colleagues, still I only earn the same. Where is the justice?
Reason 5: Inflation rate and the cost of living go up every year, but my salary stays the same. That's not fair.
Reason 6: My company makes more profit every year. Shouldn't they pass on some of this by increasing peoples salaries?
Reason 7: I can't live of the money I earn. I need more.
Do you recognise yourself? I wouldn't blame you we've all been there. But let's have a look and demystify why you still might not get your pay increase even though you think you deserve one.
Demystify reason 1 Length of service:
Many larger companies try to give employees an annual pay increase as a reward for their work and loyalty and to make up for rising costs of living. This is not only a nice gesture, but also an attempt to retain existing staff. At the end of the day, recruiting new staff does not only cost money in recruitment fees and unproductive training periods, but new staff is also likely to demand higher salaries as the average pay goes up year by year. Therefore in order to keep you, they need to keep your salary at least competitive.
However, just staying in the same company for years does not automatically qualify you for a major pay increase. Most companies award increases based on performance and increased responsibility. So if you are still doing exactly the same job as 5 years ago and your role has hardly changed or developed, this might be the reason that your salary hasn't gone up.
Maybe it is time to apply for a promotion or to discuss with your manager, that you gained a lot of experience and are ready to take on more responsibility and want to develop your role further.
Demystify reason 2 Employee age:
Some years ago a colleague who worked in the same job than I did, was furious after her request for a pay increase was declined. "I am 5 years older than you and still he sais he won't pay me more than you. He is so unfair."
However, our manager wasn't really unfair. He took us aside later and explained his reasons why I was given a pay increase whilst my colleague wasn't. Whilst she was 5 years older she had only changed career 2 years ago and therefore had less experience in marketing than I had. This meant that he had given me more demanding responsibilities over the past year whilst she was still catching up on the knowledge that I already had. Also I had shown very clearly that I want to progress my career and asked for new challenges, whilst my colleague hadn't said anything and assumed she'd been given more responsibility over time once he realised how reliable she was. After the discussion, she started playing a more active role and took on new tasks and soon was given a pay increase as well.
It may sound harsh, but your salary has little to do with your age, but all with your experience, performance, attitude and commitment. If you haven't been given a pay increase for some time, you might want to speak to your manager to find out, where you'd need to improve to get what you think, you deserve.
Demystify reason 3 Long hours:
Sometimes you put a lot of hard work into your job and you start feeling that you work 24 hours a day. You deliver everything that is asked for you and maybe even more. But still, you don't get a pay increase.
Whilst this feels very unfair, there might be a good reason for it. If the business is not performing as it should, management might not be able to award pay increases. The reasons are often not very well communicated. But if you face the choice between the company going bust (especially in a difficult economical climate) and you loosing your job or no pay increase; or between mass redundancies taking place, but a few people obtaining a pay increase then you probably will understand, why your hard work wasn't rewarded. It doesn't mean it wasn't noticed and appreciated, it just means that in the moment the company cannot afford a pay increase.
You should question why you weren't given an increase. It might be for above reasons and maybe your hard work can be rewarded in a non financial way?
Demystify reason 4 Hard work:
If this is the case, it might be that your manager is not aware of how hard you work. He might only look at the overall departmental result and not know the difference in input from individual team members. Or your colleagues might complete less of the same jobs than you do but therefore have been given other responsibilities you weren't fully aware of such as additional projects. Or it might be for the same reasons as in point 3.
In any case, if you feel unfairly treated, have the conversation and make sure you know all the facts and so does your superior.
Demystify reason 5 Inflation rate:
Whilst companies are usually aiming to increase salaries on average by the increase of inflation, this might not always be feasible.
Companies need certain cash and liquidity to survive and grow and become or remain a secure workplace. When business is hard, they might not be able to justify pay increases when the money is needed elsewhere.
It is also an often told fairy tale that companies have to increase your salary with the increased cost of living. They have no obligation to do so, however, if they want to keep their best staff on board, they are likely to try it.
Demystify reason 6 - Profits:
In theory: Yes. If a company goes well, they make a lot of profit and continue to grow, employees should participate in this success. And the most likely way to do so is by giving pay increases.
However, remember that pay increases are due to performance and job role, so just by working in a company that happens to do well, you might not be guaranteed more money.
Demystify reason 7 Need for increase
Whilst this is a very understandable reason, a company cannot be expected to give you more money just because you need it. Your job will be rated and your performance measured. If you need more money, you will need to find out how your job role needs to develop to deserve the money you need. Or you need to train and develop and apply for a different position which is higher ranked.
So, where does this leave us? If you think you should be paid more than you are, you might be right. But the only way to find out is by talking to your manager and asking the question. He might see the situation differently to you and advise you on what needs to change for you to get more money. Or he might be able to give you reasons, why currently no pay increases are given. Or he might not give you an acceptable response at all.
In any case, it will be up to you to decide where to go from there, if you want to stay in the company as it is, or implement the advise you've been given, or leave. But at least you will know exactly where you stand.
