Short intro: I lost a semi-decent paying job recently so I’m currently working at a job that doesn’t pay me enough to live. I’m getting by on Ms. Cups’ salary and consistent money from my parents.
The Situation: I’m job searching and not getting many hits. I got a hit that asked for salary expectations. I gave only a little more than I was making at my previous job (honestly it’s what I should be making normally) and they came back and said “the salary is too high so we’ll keep you on file”
The Problem: Literally anything is going to pay more than the job I have now, but how do I convey that to the person who I was just talking to? How do I basically say “I don’t care if it’s not up to my salary, I still want to look into the job”. I obviously can’t say “Hey I’m making 11 bucks an hour now, you can’t possibly be lower than that”.
Or am I just screwed because of something so stupid.
That’s a tough situation. My approach would be to tell them that my enthusiasm for working with them, making a difference and gaining priceless experience is so high that I am willing to negotiate wrt salary. Never ran into an issue like that though, so not sure how well it would work.
The problem comes in with taking the job at so far below pay-scale that in the future, you’re screwing yourself over when potential new employers ask what your last salary was.
There is also the chance that “your salary range was too high” is a polite fiction for “we don’t want you” or “we already filled the position internally” and even if you ask for something lower, it won’t be available.
THAT SAID, if you’re truly desperate? Call them back and ask directly what they see the position paying. Either they tell you a number and you can decide yes or no, or they DON’T tell you a number and you have your answer (see above).
I’ agree with Lasciel. Unless your stated requirements are so out-of-range that they wouldn’t meet if if they had to (say, it was more than your boss was making), it is just their way of saying “Your qualifications do not meet our needs”. If they were interested in hiring you, they would discuss the salary with you to see if you were flexible. By not discussing it with you, either they just aren’t interested or feel that any discussion would just be a waste or your and their time. If you would accept the job at $11.50/hr, you should have put that on their application.
Salary negotiations are always tricky. A few things to remember. First, as any recruiter will tell you, try to avoid the issue until after you know if they are interested in you. Say, “that depends a lot on the actual duties and responsibilities”, or “I’m not sure what would be expected of me–I’m sure you guys would be fair”. If you have to put something down, put down a range. If your requirements are so far out-of-line with what they can offer, then the job is probably not what you think it is.
So to give a little more background that might answer some questions.
I was doing my normal job searching and found the position on Indeed. The HR person then contacted me and said “I received your resume and like your background. I just have 2 questions for you: Can you start in mid-February and what are your salary expectations? Once I have those I can send you a writing test before an interview. Kthxbye.”
I responded with my answers. Then, however many hours later, I received an email with the “you’re to expensive buh bye” message. So, as you can see, I wasn’t very far in this process to begin with, which means I don’t think they had someone else in mind or the position was already filled. Otherwise, why reach out in the first place?
The job posting itself never mentioned it was entry level, the qualifications were “5-7 years experience” which is why I gave the salary number I did…very reasonable for that level of experience. The description was even worded to have a bit more responsibilities than simply “entry level”.
What really pisses me off is that it just proves something I have said for years. It should absolutely be a law that companies post a salary range when posting a job. I don’t care if your Wendy’s, Apple, Disney or the place I just applied to…every company should give either an exact wage (like the fast food hourly people) or a range. How many millions of people are getting screwed out of money they deserve because a company said “Well we’ll pay 50k for this job, but this person only wants 45k! So we’ll pay that!”. Plus, it alleviates situations like mine. “Are you ok with the salary range?” “Yes” “Good” and then we can negotiate within that range.
If you can get to speak to the recruiter in person, and if salary expectations are on the table before you even get an interview (sometimes they are, and that’s not flexible), I would suggest stating your actual salary expectations - if that turns out to be too high for the range the recruiter has been given, you can say that, for the right opportunity, you may be prepared to compromise, so you would like to be considered for interview.
That’s how I’ve been doing it. I have salary expectations, but if I see a job that has a genuinely exciting future in it, I might be more willing to ‘invest’ by going in at a lower salary level -it’s a balancing act - in the same sort of way that if I see a role that’s pushing the limit of some other factor (perhaps commute range, for example), I’ll consider it a more likely opportunity if the remuneration is more generous.
I don’t agree with that. The company already has a pay range in mind and you should know what your skills are worth. I don’t want to waste time interviewing if the job pays half of what I’m asking for.
But, oftentimes, I’m not given that choice. In fact, I’m asked what my salary expectations are in the first or second interview more times than I’ve ever been told it at the end. I’ve never been told it at the end. Ever.
I get it, companies are cheap and will easily sacrifice a better candidate for a cheaper one, but I think it would be less work for all involved if they put their range up front.