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Expected Salary Increase?
3

Expected Salary Increase?

Expected Salary Increase?

(OP)
I was wondering if anyone out there can lend me a little advice.  I was recently promoted to a level 2 engineer but I feel the raise was less then deserved.  I have been with my company for 2 years now and when I got my promotion, I was told that the raise also included my merit raise.  

Long story short, I ended up with a total 9% raise.  My merit raise last year was 2% - is this inline with the current trends?  

I have talked with people from other companies (also other fields) and they typically receive a 10% raise for a promotion.

Any adivce is greatly appreciated!

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

My typical grade level promotion raise is 8-9% plus annual COL + merit raise.

Seems like you're right in the ballpark.  Every industry is different.

--Scott

http://wertel.eng.pro

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

swertel-
You get a COL increase AND a merit increase?
Is that correct?

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

I get one increase that is called COL+Merit, during my annual review.  The minimum percentage is based on the COL increase.  Anything above and beyond that, based on my performance, is merit.

COL is typically around 2%, merit is typically around 2%.  I can budget on getting about a 4% raise per year.

COL has been as low as 1%, and merit can be as high as 4%.  Maximum total raise can't exceed 5.5% - which no one ever gets anyway.

--Scott

http://wertel.eng.pro

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

So, we're concerned about a $600 or so delta?  

Is that enough of an incentive for you to change jobs?

TTFN



RE: Expected Salary Increase?

In my experience a typical annual raise, whatever you call it is somewhere between 3 to 5%. Thats why you rarely get ahead sticking with the same company because you are only really getting a raise to offset inflation.
For a promotion its somewhere between 5 - 10%.

So if you got 9% percent then thats about average.

Congratulations on your promotion.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

9% raise is common here in the USA (for promotion). It is actually better than a lot of companies.

Chris
SolidWorks 06 5.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 02-10-07)

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

9% is pretty good.  I wouldn't quibble between 9% or 10% though.  Both are higher than many people see without changing companies.

That said I got about 19% raise at around 21 months but I'd gone from being a new graduate to being project manager for a major program.  Plus the guy that hired me left around the same time and I think they half expected me to follow which in a department of less than 10 at the time would have been a big hit.

The raise I'd had about 6 months before when I was allowed to drop the 'Junior' from my title was around 6%.

This year at my current place I'll be lucky to get a raise (I don't think they have separate COLA & Merit) that even matches inflation, let alone anywhere near 10%.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

For me, annual increase is between 2 & 3.5%. Promotion from assistant engineer to engineer was 7%.

9% seems OK to me.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

When you get into people management and see the rules handed down from above, you'll be amazed at how it all works. Budgets for this, for that, they even budget the number of people who can get a promotion in the whole company.  Your boss and even some Vice Presidents don't have any say in the amount, its all preprogramed, thats why everyone is saying you are in the ballpark.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

Not only that, but the HR people meet each year to fix the annual increases, so that people won't get enticed to jump ship because one company is offering better annual increases.

THAT's why the increases are all so similar.

TTFN



RE: Expected Salary Increase?

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RE: Expected Salary Increase?

2
And the ultimate bottom line is this:  eventually you (and your company) run the risk of losing out on contracts due to costs.  If/when that happens, your big pay raise last year may not seem that great.

Fact is, there are always opposing considerations:
- bid low and run a low or negative profit
- bid high and risk not getting the work
- offer small salary increases and risk losing good employees,
- offer high salary increases and risk not getting new work and have to lay off good employees.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

In my last job I went three straight years with no pay increase of any kind. During one of those three years I survived three rounds of management layoffs. I was also forced to work as a replacement employee in at least one union strike. It wasn't pretty. After we worked our way out of that rut, I was promoted to a new position, but with no raise. Just more responsibility. I went to my VP and stated my case. The company had returned to profitability, my previous projects had been resounding successes, and since I was accepting more responsibility, I expected to be compensated accordingly.  After three weeks of "reflecting on this", he told me that I didn't deserve another dime. I was angry, and so I responded to a headhunter that contacted me on that same day. I'm glad that I did, because I eventually accepted the position that he described. It was a major step up in terms of position, title, pay, and job quality. My base pay increased dramatically. And the first thing that my new boss said to me as he handed me the written offer was, "[Your company] is grossly underpaying you."

Maui

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

IRstuff,
Is that legal for HR's to have a roundtable? is that what they call it? a roundtable?
That's price fixing in my book.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

You are only worth what someone will pay for you.  Basic lesson of the retail world.

Is a shirt from Abercrombie worth more than one from Kmart?  Not if the one from Kmart fits me better and is just as well made.

Will I pay more for the Abercrombie shirt if I can get the Kmart one for less?  Probably not (unless I'm under 18, which I'm not...)

Will your boss pay you more if he knows you'll stay at what he's paying you?  Nope...  I've surprised a couple of bosses in my life who thought I wouldn't quit and move to something better.  Their response, in both cases was, "you were due for a raise soon..."   

RE: Expected Salary Increase?


Hello,

Good day, here is an article I just read:

http://biz.yahoo.com/weekend/lemon_1.html

It's a bit too optimistic, but I like the advice:

"Why don't you ask the boss exactly what you need to accomplish here to get that promotion and then establish a schedule to do those things?"

cheers,

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

That works fine until other factors in the organization change and though you've met your bosses wish list he can't get you a pay rise.

While negotiations this year are only just starting I'm pretty sure I'm going to fall into that very category.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?


Good point Kenat, there are many factors to consider.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

Quote:

That works fine until other factors in the organization change and though you've met your bosses wish list he can't get you a pay rise.

But then at least your boss knows that you're itching for a raise.  Like michfan, who's surprised two former bosses, most engineers don't give much indication that they're upset and ready to leave.

Lets face it.  Most engineering managers were once engineers.  You can't expect them to pick up on subtle social cues.  You need to find a non-confrontational way to say "Give me more money!"  Finding ways to improve your value to the company is something that a manager will have a hard time arguing with.

-b

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

The reason you can't ask your boss what you can do to get a promotion is that his boss is the one that makes up promotions.  There isn't a typical promotion track in engineering anymore (at least in my industry).  Every so often I'll see a place where they have Engineer level 1 to 4.  What happens is; they only budget for 1 of each and therefore the only way to promote is for one of the engineers to leave AND THEY COUNT ON THAT.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

True, but if your co-worker asks your boss "What can I do to get a promotion" and you just and stew about your low salary, who do you think will get that one promotion when it comes around?

Expecting your boss to promote you when you've given no indication that you want/need a higher salary is silly.  Their job is easiest when things change the least.  If you seem like your not leaving, then they won't change anything.  Why should they fight their boss to get you more money if you yourself don't seem to care.  

If you start (politely) agitating for a raise, and they think your worth keeping around, then something might happen.  Of course it might not happen, and that's when you need to leave.

-b

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

Chances are it's not even his boss.

I've had verbal assurance (which I took as being worth the paper they were written onsmile) from my bosses indirect reporting boss that if a certain project went through etc we'd be rewarded.  Despite the project going OK doesn't look like any rewards are gonna happen.

Just before Christmas we had layoffs.

We now have a new HR department and sounds like payraises, if any, are going to be based on 'industry standard' for our positions.  Given that depending how you look at it I could be considered near the top of the pay scale for my experience etc, I don't see a significant pay rise if any in my immediate future.

Effectively my employer 'moved the goal posts' as we used to say in the UK.

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

KENAT,

Having a new HR dept. means that the monies that may have been around for pay rises will now more than likely have been used up to eastablish a new dept. Just watch how the new HR people's salaries are adjusted in the coming years and ask yourself where has the value been added to your company by having them around. HR is a dept. that can create sand in a desert

Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK
 

RE: Expected Salary Increase?

We have a "new" HR dept because everyone there when I started was either fired or resigned!  In fact one of the new people has already been fired!

Our local HR dept is 3 people.  I started here as contractor about 18 months ago at about the same time as the new HR director.

All 3 of them were gone by the end of last summer.  All 3 weren't replaced till just before Christmas and already one has been fired.  

Can't help thinking that rate of turnover should be telling me something!

Still I shouldn't complain, I'm better off than one guy in my group.  As part of going from contract/temporary we were actually meant to get a pay raise as our group had done so well etc.  This one guy they screwed up the calculations but only realized after it had been signed off by corporate.  When he pointed out he was actually getting about the same (think it may have been a slight cut) he was basically told tuff, take it or leave it, this despite our direct boss trying to make a big deal of it.  

The points I was trying to make were that:

A.  Decisions on pay increases are often made several layers above your manager or even by other departments with little input from your manager, despite the 'evaluation' process.

B.  Change in staff at those levels (or your manager) can easily negate any agreement or understanding you had (I know verbal contract isn't worth the paper etc)

C.  Other change in business circumstances, such as a slow down in your market etc, can likewise change or negate any understanding/agreement.

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