Joe Miner Posted January 15, 2009 Posted January 15, 2009 Ask if you can boink the secretary or some other hot coworker in lieu of additional salary. Seriously though, congrats, and I'd agree with most of the rest here. Take the job if it meets your needs and it's close to what you were making before.
tennesseeboy Posted January 15, 2009 Posted January 15, 2009 There are times to quibble and times to go for it. You probably don't have much leverage, so take the job as offered and raise the issue of salary again in a year. You might want to write a nice acceptance letter talking about how much you are impressed with the company and the people you met, how excited about the opportunity you will have to use your skills and help the company in these difficult economic times, and point out that while the salary is not what you had hoped, you understand the present economic situation and hope you can discuss salary and compensation again after a year or so. Congrats.
rockpile Posted January 15, 2009 Author Posted January 15, 2009 Thanks for all the input. I mostly wanted others POV - I am not trying to squeeze them for a couple bucks, but if there were ways to sweeten the pot, I would be a fool not to ask. I spoke to my recruiter, the Veep (my new boss), and the controller today, and everything is falling in place. I will close the deal tomorrow. The hard part for us 50 somethings who have been downsized is that we were making $15K more, just two or three years ago. Of course the current $365/week after taxes from unemployment is easily beat! I can only imagine the feeling of college grads who are $100K in debt with MBAs being offered $25K. Or some of my peers who either cannot find a job or are being offered $12/hour! There are a lot more positives than negatives, and this job will be a new adventure. I am a lucky man indeed.
GG Posted January 15, 2009 Posted January 15, 2009 Listen to what KD has to say. And if you missed it, read it again
stuckincincy Posted January 15, 2009 Posted January 15, 2009 Thanks for all the input. I mostly wanted others POV - I am not trying to squeeze them for a couple bucks, but if there were ways to sweeten the pot, I would be a fool not to ask. I spoke to my recruiter, the Veep (my new boss), and the controller today, and everything is falling in place. I will close the deal tomorrow. The hard part for us 50 somethings who have been downsized is that we were making $15K more, just two or three years ago. Of course the current $365/week after taxes from unemployment is easily beat! I can only imagine the feeling of college grads who are $100K in debt with MBAs being offered $25K. Or some of my peers who either cannot find a job or are being offered $12/hour! There are a lot more positives than negatives, and this job will be a new adventure. I am a lucky man indeed. I knew it would work out someway. "Remember, George, no man is a failure who has friends..."
millbank Posted January 15, 2009 Posted January 15, 2009 remember...... Rocks and Sand by Stephen R. Covey Here are some good words to remember and live by. A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him. When class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, rocks about 2" in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full? They agreed that it was. So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. The students laughed. The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled everything else. "Now," said the professor, "I want you to recognize that this is your life." "The rocks are the important things - your family, your partner, your health - anything that is so important to you that if were lost, you would be nearly destroyed. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff." "If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles, and the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your energy and time on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your wife out dancing. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal." "Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand." - you are a great person Tom, places are found for such people ............
rockpile Posted January 16, 2009 Author Posted January 16, 2009 "Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand." - you are a great person Tom, places are found for such people ............ Thank you, my friend. AND, I always take care of the "rocks" first ! If all goes well I will be employed again tomorrow.
Nanker Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 Rock, explore the vacation/personal time off angle if you can and it feels appropriate. See if there's any flexibility in that. Vacation is generally an accrued benefit - so you might not get any time off this year at all - except Holidays. Your maximum leverage point is now - before you accept the job. If they've offered you a position - then they want YOU. However, you don't want to turn them off at the last minute by appearing to be hard-lining over dollars or benefits. It's a pas-de-deux. Good luck!
dpbillsfan Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 Take the job, prove your worth and the money will take care of itself if the company is any good. That's always been my experience. I'd never pass up a job in a good company with good people over "a little" money. And that's magnified in this economy. I almost blew the great job I have now because I was getting too greedy when making a counter offer. They offered x amount I countered with xxx amount and was told "good luck with your job search". I ended up talking my way back into the job almost two years ago and have received a 9% first year raise and total bonus' equaling 13% of my yearly salary last year. This company is great to work for and the people are fantastic.
BuffOrange Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 I'm a little surprised by the replies here. Yes it's a bad economy and yes you are unemployed. Those are usually detriments to getting an offer in the first place. When you get that written offer, not so much - they picked you believing you're the best person for the job. A scenerio like dpbillsfan's can happen (though I would have to question whether a written offer was actually in place), but in most cases it's much more difficult to get a raise once you've started working somewhere than during the negotiations process (and that's what it is).
aussiew Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 Our prayers are answered Rock. Wonderful news!
dpbillsfan Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 I'm a little surprised by the replies here. Yes it's a bad economy and yes you are unemployed. Those are usually detriments to getting an offer in the first place. When you get that written offer, not so much - they picked you believing you're the best person for the job. A scenerio like dpbillsfan's can happen (though I would have to question whether a written offer was actually in place), but in most cases it's much more difficult to get a raise once you've started working somewhere than during the negotiations process (and that's what it is). When the offer was made to me it was done verbally over the phone. I was also asking for about 15 % more than the offer. Like I said I got greedy, but you never know until you ask. I knew the company had been looking for the right person to fill the position and thought I could use that to my advantage. I was rewarded quite well after my first review and with the bonus that I received.
rockpile Posted January 16, 2009 Author Posted January 16, 2009 Our prayers are answered Rock. Wonderful news! Thanks! They are having their "holiday party" a week from today at Rick's Prime Rib. Free dinner and two free drinks! I was asked if I liked wine. When I said yes, the receptionist hinted that there would probably be a gift in my office on Monday. Gee, I have walls and a door, no more cube!
Alaska Darin Posted January 16, 2009 Posted January 16, 2009 I'm a little surprised by the replies here. Yes it's a bad economy and yes you are unemployed. Those are usually detriments to getting an offer in the first place. When you get that written offer, not so much - they picked you believing you're the best person for the job. A scenerio like dpbillsfan's can happen (though I would have to question whether a written offer was actually in place), but in most cases it's much more difficult to get a raise once you've started working somewhere than during the negotiations process (and that's what it is). I've never had any problem getting a raise in a good company. Any company that doesn't pay for merit will have good employees in the rearview mirror pretty quickly. In fact, I've never had to ask for a raise.
IDBillzFan Posted January 17, 2009 Posted January 17, 2009 Take the job, prove your worth and the money will take care of itself if the company is any good. That's always been my experience. I'd never pass up a job in a good company with good people over "a little" money. And that's magnified in this economy. Bingo.
Fezmid Posted January 17, 2009 Posted January 17, 2009 - See if you can get more base paid vacation. My last 2 employers had given me an extra week. I'd second this. My wife works for a non-profit and got 4 weeks of vacation. A year or so later her boss said she would've given 5 weeks if my wife had asked. (why would she even SAY that after the fact?!)
BillsWatch Posted January 17, 2009 Posted January 17, 2009 He said he wanted to raise the value of his compensation package, not lower it. He did not say "season tickets next to Ramius" so it does raise the value.
BillsWatch Posted January 17, 2009 Posted January 17, 2009 Any and all angles are appreciated! I need to make sure all responsibilites and goals are documented, too. Rock Ask for flexible hours - If you can get a extra day off you can not spend money those days. Another thing to ask for is comp time - you work more when busy and get recorded time off another day when not busy; a way of getting more vacation time. Neither costs anything to company except paperwork and are valuable to employees.
Chandler#81 Posted January 19, 2009 Posted January 19, 2009 Congrats and Best wishes on the new endeavor, Rock!
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