GSLIS Continuing Education Negotiating Salary and Benefits When, What and How

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GSLIS Continuing EducationNegotiating Salary
and BenefitsWhen, What and How

• Laura Saunders
• Fall 2003

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Job Offer NegotiationWhen

• Never bring up salary or benefits on a first
  interview.
• In fact, try not to be the first person to bring
  up salary at all. Usually, the first person to
  put a number on the table loses some bargaining
  power, so if possible, wait for the employer to
  present the salary range for the position.

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Job Offer Negotiations

• If you are asked to state your salary range, you
  can usually deflect the question by saying you
  are flexible or negotiable
• You can also try turning the question around and
  asking the employer what range they have in mind.
• Either way, express your enthusiasm for the job
  and indicate that the experience is more
  important than the salary.

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Job Offer Negotiations

• In some cases, you may be pressed to give a
  number first.
• If you have tried saying you are flexible, and
  still feel you have to offer a number, offer a
  range, rather than a flat number.
• Keep in mind that once you offer a range, you
  must be ready to accept an offer anywhere in that
  range.

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Job Offer NegotiationHow Evaluating the Offer

• Once the employer makes you an offer, you must
  evaluate the entire package.
• First, be sure that you understand the entire
  offer- the salary and the benefits.
• Ask for clarification if anything is unclear.
• Dont accept an offer on the spot- it is
  perfectly acceptable and advisable to ask for a
  couple of days to think it over.

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Job Offer NegotiationHow Evaluating the Offer

• Take some time to review the offer.
• Make sure you are considering the whole package-
  not just the salary.
• Many people make the mistake of just looking at
  the salary, and not considering the benefit
  package- vacation/ time off, medical, dental,
  etc.
• Go over the benefits carefully and try to
  determine what they are worth to you.

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What are the Benefits?

• Different employers will offer different benefit
  packages, and these can vary quite widely.
  However, some standard benefits might include
• Medical and/or Dental Insurance- usually a
  percentage covered.
• Vacation time and sick time
• 401K Plans or Retirement/ Pension Plans
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Stock Options
• Life/ Disability Insurance
• Flex Time

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What are Benefits Worth?

• In order to evaluate the benefits, you have to
  determine what they are worth to you.
• It can be easy to add a value to certain types of
  benefits-i.e. tuition reimbursement may equal
  thousands of dollars a year- but only if you use
  it.
• The value might be personal-ie if your spouse has
  medical insurance, than the type or amount of
  coverage offered by your employer may not matter
  to you.

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What Are Benefits Worth?

• Review the benefits package and decide which
  benefits you would use, and how much they might
  be worth to you, either monetarily, or on a
  personal level.
• Add this to the salary to get an idea of the
  complete picture.

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Job Offer NegotiationHow Evaluating the Offer

• Once you have looked at the whole offer, ask
  yourself the following questions
• How does the salary match the research you did
  and your range?
• Will the salary meet your needs?
• Which benefits are offered? Do they match your
  needs?
• Is this offer acceptable? If not, what would
  make it acceptable to you?

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Job Offer NegotiationHow Evaluating the Offer

• When evaluating, you may also want to consider
  some points that are outside of the offer itself
  such as
• Commuting distance and options to job
• Culture/ atmosphere of the office
• Work Schedule
• Management style
• These may be as important to your overall job
  satisfaction as the salary and benefits.

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Job Offer NegotiationsBefore You Begin

• You have decided that you want to negotiate.
  Before you begin
• Know what you are worth- research salaries for
  your position and level.
• There are many salary surveys that can give you
  an indication of average salaries for different
  positions. Check the class web site for links to
  these.
• Remember that most salary surveys give a national
  average salary. These averages vary widely by
  geographic region.

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Job Offer NegotiationsBefore You Begin

• You can get information that is more
  geographically specific from
• Salaryexpert.com
• Relocation Salary Calculator- lets you compare
  salaries for different cities and states
• http//www.homefair.com/homefair/cmr/salcalc.html
• Know what you need in order to meet your needs-
  rent, food, etc. Create a budget to figure this
  out.
• Rather than a specific number- like 35,000- have
  a 5- 7,000 range in mind.

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Job Offer NegotiationsHow The Offer

• Once you have done your research, you can begin
  to negotiate.
• Before you even begin, thank them for the offer
  and express your enthusiasm about the job and
  your interest in the position.
• Indicate that you were hoping to make more, and
  offer your range. Be prepared to accept the low
  end of your range.
• If you have other offers for more money, it is
  okay to say so, but never lie.

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Their Final Offer

• If the employer comes back with a new offer that
  is within your requested range
• Congratulations!!! You have successfully
  negotiated your offer. Enjoy!

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Their Final Offer

• If they cant meet your salary requirements
• The ball is back in your court.
• Weigh- and if possible negotiate- benefits.
• Consider the amount of experience youll gain.
• Make a list of pros and cons.

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Benefit Negotiations

• Most benefits are standard for all employees, but
  some areas that may be negotiable include
• job title
• start date
• review date- especially important if a
  performance review can be tied to a salary
  increase
• amount of vacation
• flexible schedule- i.e. a compressed work week,
  or non-standard hours.

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Summary

• It is always worth trying to negotiate salary.
• Once the negotiation is done, however, the
  decision is up to you and must be based on the
  entire package including
• Salary
• Benefits
• Overall experience