How to negotiate salary?

[christy101]

How should one negotiate Pharmacist salary? I know for many chain pharmacies they usually have a set pay scale already. But I'm wondering about the independents and non chain pharmacies. How should salary be negotiated and is it usually brought up during the interview or discussed after? Do employers usually tell you what their offer is or do they ask you what you want? And if they ask what my desired salary is, how should I answer as in do I actually tell them a value or is there a better way to talk about it? I might be going on a few interviews and don't want to offend any future boss or employers and salary seems like one of those things that you don't really know whats the best way to go about sometimes and don't want to be impolite and mess up any offers. Thank you.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Usually you negotiate salary with HR - often it may come up in the interview - I always say it is negotiable, this is what I make now $XXX. How ballsy do you wanna be? All depends on how much you need/want the job. If you are happy in your current job and you are just testing the waters, you can be more aggressive. At an independent - you won't be talking to a HR department, just be honest, ask for a little more than you really want, and you negotiate down.

 

[type b pharmD]

This topic can be summed up in a few words.

Step 1

Option 1
Negotiate from a position of strength (ie currently maintain a better paying job)

Option 2
Get more/better offers

Step 2
Communicate that without being a complete dick.


If you don't have step 1 accomplished, don't even waste your time in this labor surplus environment.

Negotiations are about leverage, not about having some mystical level of charm and communication skills.