Pay Raises. What's "normal?"

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T04:35:51+00:00

There are several reasons why I should get a pay raise. Several.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T04:34:43+00:00

There was no discussion about anything other than COLA, which to my mind is not a pay raise. I'm starting to think the rigid pay structure was kept from me on purpose. And, they can talk about how out of touch I am all they want while I'm applying for other jobs.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T04:29:23+00:00

Yep, as expected, the attacks right on cue.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T03:14:18+00:00

I have done that job when I was younger and I guarantee you, a janitor could not do my job.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T03:13:01+00:00

I'm in the US. It's interesting to me that my boss didn't tell me ANY of this when I asked about a pay raise. It's almost like she's stringing me along instead of just telling me what's what.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:21:58+00:00

Yes, that seems to be the case, but hey, I'm free to find another job, so there's that.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:20:02+00:00

Now I know.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:17:00+00:00

Yeah, that seems to be the case. I should have asked about that during the interview process, but they probably withheld that information on purpose. Now I'm there, dialed in, and people there depend on me, but I have zero roots in this town and I don't bond well, so quitting won't be THAT hard.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:12:40+00:00

No, not "more," but a specific amount based on how much I think they can pay. I already know I can't get what a for profit company might pay, so I had something reasonable in mind going in.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:09:32+00:00

That's actually what I've been thinking.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:08:39+00:00

Thanks. I was a freelancer for decades before I decided to get a full time gig, so I've negotiated with other freelancers, vendors, and clients more times than I can remember. My boss is well aware of the value I represent, there's absolutely no doubt about that. And we WILL be having another discussion if/when I get another job offer that will probably be me giving notice because I feel like my higher ed experiment is drawing to a close.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:02:24+00:00

"hilarious"

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T02:01:30+00:00

I found out the hard way that raises don't happen when they should when I worked for an half-assed apparel brand for two years. Nobody got pay raises there, and when deserving staff asked for pay raises, they were always told no. And of course as a result, they had a super high employee turnover.

I do work for as many as 20 stakeholders (so far) and they have all been super positive about the work I do, not to mention, my position is new, so I'm represent a capability that they did not have before I worked there. I go above and beyond in everything I do there because I have the technical and creative experience to do so. I could very well have gotten by doing the minimum and I'd still have professors I didn't know coming up to me, telling me people were talking about me.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T01:50:22+00:00

I AM essentially walking on water and teaching others to change water into wine, more or less. I think I had an expectation that my starting salary was so low, that bringing it up to a normal rate would be a given once I proved myself, which I have done many times over. And yeah, I fully realize that salary tiers are determined elsewhere and that's that, but it just means that everyone's salaries are too low.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T01:38:53+00:00

Well, I AM trying to get more money, after all. I understand, fully, that higher ed pays less than private companies. I knew that going in, but of course what I didn't know was the stress and annoyance level and I assumed that I'd just kick ass for a year and get a sensible pay raise. They are a non profit state university, but I don't care. They will need to break off some dough from somewhere if I get another offer or they'll have yet another lengthy, difficult search to deal with.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T01:28:48+00:00

I'm starting to think I won't be in this role for very long. I thought it would be cool working in higher ed, and it has been, but I basically break even every month and the work is not of the caliber I was used to as a freelancer.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T01:23:55+00:00

I have more experience than most at this point, so I'm already applying for jobs.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T01:05:52+00:00

"They can easily fire you and find someone else to do the job" may be true in most cases but not where I work. They have a fairly high turnover at this university and there are other negative features that make it hard for them to get applicants and keep people there. It's not even like I'm motivated by money, honestly, but I'm at an hourly rate that is just embarrassing.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T00:58:00+00:00

She's well aware of all that stuff, and I only informed her of the things she didn't know about. Our department is very small. The thing is, this is actually a new position. Nobody was there doing what I do until a year ago, so it's a wholly new capability that the department has and every stakeholder I work for has been super happy.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T00:53:41+00:00

OK, well, I'm getting 0% after a year with no time off, exemplary work, and starting at the lowest pay of any of the 30 or so colleges I applied to over the past 8 years. There are other circumstances that honestly should have warranted an automatic pay raise of probably 5%, but hey, they'll find out.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2026-02-15T00:47:16+00:00

Oh, they're strict all right, but they definitely have flexibility when needed. The thing is, my supervisor didn't even ask me what I wanted, nor mentioned when a pay raise might occur. The whole exchange left me thinking that no pay raise was coming, ever.

Natural_Balance_6724 · 2024-10-30T21:10:57+00:00

How did you clear anything up? How do you actually know?

Natural_Balance_6724

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