What's the best way to ask for a raise?

[PreMD86]

I've been working in a hospital doing clinical research for the past couple of years. It started out as a full-time summer internship, but when the school year started I decided to stay and my employer agreed. So, I ended up commuting 2 hours each way on weekends and did 15-20 hours. The pay didn't bother me so much then, since I was doing it mainly for the clinical experience and the LORs. Now that I've graduated and got into med school, my main objective is to earn as much as possible until school starts. I make a little less than $10/hr, and get no benefits, holidays, or vacations. Meanwhile, my fellow RAs, who essentially do the same job (but were hired right after they graduated), are all salaried at 30-35k w/ full benefits. Infact, according to payscale.com, I'm at the bottom 1 percentile of salaries. I'm by no means all about the $, and owe this place alot in terms of gettin into med school, but I think we can all agree that 1 percentile is pretty insulting.

So, my question is: if any of you do clinical research, what do you get paid? Were any of you successful in asking for a raise? If so, what's the best way to go about this? Thanks.

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[Cegar]

Ask for a meeting and explain the situation. That's what I always do.

 

[Maxx4]

Look at it from their perspective. Why should they put you on salary when you plan on leaving them once school starts? Also, if you're going to ask for a raise, go for the $3-5.00 up range. Always start at the highest then negotiate down.

 

[PreMD86]

Ask for a meeting and explain the situation. That's what I always do.

Thanks for the post. Were you successful at getting the raise? Were you prepared for them to outright refuse? What I'm worried about, is what do I do if they say no...are these situations an ultimatum, or do I just go back to my desk and stick around til august?

 

[Maxx4]

Just don't threaten to leave if you don't get the raise. If you do this, they'll question your loyalty.

 

[PreMD86]

Look at it from their perspective. Why should they put you on salary when you plan on leaving them once school starts? Also, if you're going to ask for a raise, go for the $3-5.00 up range. Always start at the highest then negotiate down.

I don't want them to put me on a salary. I'm fine with being hourly, as long as my rate increases. The way I see it, salaries cost the employers much, much more in terms of benefits (vacations, health insurance...). By staying hourly, I'm giving those things up and saving them money. So why should I get 30-40% less than my salaried coworkers?

 

[PreMD86]

Just don't threaten to leave if you don't get the raise. If you do this, they'll question your loyalty.

How do you do this w/o threatening to leave? From their perpective, if I go in and say "look, I'd really like a raise, but it's not like I'd leave if you refuse", what incentive do they have to give me one? From a business perspective, the only way I see them agreeing is if they're faced with the need to recruit and hire a new RA to replace me- one that will likely be salaried.

 

[Cegar]

You have a degree. You're currently in the bottom 1% of earners for your job and education.

If this is true and they refuse you a raise, then you are not very valuable to them.

 

[emttim]

I disagree with not threatening to leave. A business has no reason to give an employee anything if that employee is "happy" enough that he/she will stay with the current conditions.

I would ask for a meeting or sit down with your boss and explain the situation. If they aren't going to give you a decent raise, then I would just say something to the effect of "Well, I feel like I am worth more than what you are paying me, and as a result, I'm going to start looking for another job." and then give them your 2 weeks' notice.

Seriously, 9.50/hour? It's not too hard to find a job that pays more than that, especially if you're a graduate.

 

[Cegar]

I dealt cards at a casino for $20 an hour right out of high school.

The waitresses made more than that.

$10/hr with a degree is riot worthy.

 

[Maxx4]

From my experiences threatening to leave did absolutely nothing. Not only did I not get the raise, they let me go two weeks later.

 

[PreMD86]

I dealt cards at a casino for $20 an hour right out of high school.

The waitresses made more than that.

$10/hr with a degree is riot worthy.

I whole-heartedly agree. The kicker is, since I started working there, the miniumum wage increased from $6.50 to $8. Sometimes I look at the woman that empties my trash can and wonder if she makes more than me.

 

[Cegar]

Well, you don't threaten to leave when you ask.

You ask. If denied, then you leave.

 

[Cegar]

I whole-heartedly agree. The kicker is, since I started working there, the miniumum wage increased from $6.50 to $8. Sometimes I look at the woman that empties my trash can and wonder if she makes more than me.

You go and fight for what's yours.

Worse comes to worse, you can work in a restaurant waiting tables for $15-$20 an hour.

 

[Maxx4]

Well, you don't threaten to leave when you ask.

You ask. If denied, then you leave.

Lol. Well, of course. I didn't walk in there and say, "It's either I get a raise or I'm leaving." After they said no, I was going to leave anyway but I like to find a job before I leave the current one. They just beat me to it.

 

[Cegar]

Well, that's the way to go. That way you don't have to work in an awkward environment for two weeks.

 

[Maxx4]

You go and fight for what's yours.

Worse comes to worse, you can work in a restaurant waiting tables for $15-$20 an hour.

Really? Where? What state do you live in?

 

[Cegar]

Washington.

 

[Maxx4]

This is the first time I'm hearing of a waiter/ess making more then $2.15 an hour. They rely heavily on tips and that to me is like working on commission. You'll never know what your cheque will be like.

 

[Cegar]

In Washington, the minimum wage is ~$9. Tips vary by location and clientèle. They can also not be subtracted from your minimum wage.

A lot of service personnel make very good money. A few of the card dealers I worked with made ~$30 an hour.

That being said, if you don't live in a state with such sane minimum wage laws, you wont make nearly as much.

 

[PreMD86]

This is the first time I'm hearing of a waiter/ess making more then $2.15 an hour. They rely heavily on tips and that to me is like working on commission. You'll never know what your cheque will be like.

It's obviously an average of wage+tips. I know plenty of waiters that makes 25-30 with tips. I used to work in commissioned sales, and let me tell you, I don't see waitressing as being the same one bit- The food sells itself, you just have to be there to put it on the table. The problem with that is from my understanding, waitressing is pretty hard to break into, and unless you have experience, you need connections to get hired. I tutor on the side for 30-40/hr, which is great, but you're at the mercy of your student's needs. The only thing keeping me in my under-paid job is the fact that it's a guaranteed 40 hours in the bank.

 

[Cegar]

Good God man. Go to craigslist and ***** yourself out to parents who want their children to get into medical school.

 

[PreMD86]

In Washington, the minimum wage is ~$9. Tips vary by location and clientèle. They can also not be subtracted from your minimum wage.

A lot of service personnel make very good money. A few of the card dealers I worked with made ~$30 an hour.

That being said, if you don't live in a state with such sane minimum wage laws, you wont make nearly as much.

Minimum waiges for tip-based jobs are completely separate from state min wages. Here, min wage is $8, but tip-based jobs get around $2.50. With that being said, at 20% tips, you don't have to sell much food to make an extra 20-30 an hour.

 

[Karen12345]

About two years ago, the minimum wage in Connecticut was about $8. Those serving food in restaurants always made less because of the tips. I never heard of anyone making more than $10/hour in restaurant wages. That $15-20 in Washington seems great. Connecticut is known for relatively high wages and high cost of living. I always thought life was cheaper in Washington. $15/hour to wait tables is either too good to be true or "wow!"

 

[Cegar]

About two years ago, the minimum wage in Connecticut was about $8. Those serving food in restaurants always made less because of the tips. I never heard of anyone making more than $10/hour in restaurant wages. That $15-20 in Washington seems great. Connecticut is known for relatively high wages and high cost of living. I always thought life was cheaper in Washington. $15/hour to wait tables is either too good to be true or "wow!"

Well, in most parts of the state, the cost of living is low. In the Seattle/Puget Sound area, it is rather high. Rent for a 300-500 square foot studio ranges from $500 to $1000 depending on area and building. It's a bit better in Tacoma, Olympic, Bremerton, et cetera... but house prices are still actually rising in this area.

Prices on a typical 3 bedroom 1940 Victorian went from ~100k in 2000 to ~250k. In Seattle, you're generally looking at ~500k for the same thing.

 

[sunny1]

I don't want them to put me on a salary. I'm fine with being hourly, as long as my rate increases. The way I see it, salaries cost the employers much, much more in terms of benefits (vacations, health insurance...). By staying hourly, I'm giving those things up and saving them money. So why should I get 30-40% less than my salaried coworkers?

You never know with HR - it might be much easier for your department to get HR to switch you to salaried and get the 30k base than to up your hourly rate. It all depends on the HR folks.

Either way, you need to schedule a short meeting with your boss or supervisor. Then sit down and explain the situation. Lay out the level of work you do combined with other RAs and your education compared against theirs. Say it's frustrating to be compensated at such a lower rate for the same work. Ask whether they would be willing to speak with HR to see about ways to increase your hourly rate based on completed undergraduate education and experience. They may have to reclassify you if there are different levels of your position (i.e. RA I, RA II, RA III).

The only way to do it is to be upfront about it. Polite but honest. Likely they already know the compensation rates aren't fair, but they've been too busy to do anything about the inequity and/or they've just been waiting til you made a fuss about it.

Of course, the major kink in all this is that you plan to leave for med school in - what - 5 months? I doubt you'll have much luck if this is the case. I mean, it likely would take a month for HR to kick a raise into effect and by that point...well...you know.

Regardless, it can't hurt to ask and see how they respond. If you have a supportive supervisor, they likely will care about you being happy, whether or not they can do anything about it this late in the game (if it is common knowledge you are checking out for med school soon). But if they can make the change, a few more bucks per hour for 4-5 months is better than none. So go ahead and schedule that brief sit-down meeting with your boss or supervisor. You'll never know if you don't ask.

 

[PreMD86]

You never know with HR - it might be much easier for your department to get HR to switch you to salaried and get the 30k base than to up your hourly rate. It all depends on the HR folks.

Either way, you need to schedule a short meeting with your boss or supervisor. Then sit down and explain the situation. Lay out the level of work you do combined with other RAs and your education compared against theirs. Say it's frustrating to be compensated at such a lower rate for the same work. Ask whether they would be willing to speak with HR to see about ways to increase your hourly rate based on completed undergraduate education and experience. They may have to reclassify you if there are different levels of your position (i.e. RA I, RA II, RA III).

The only way to do it is to be upfront about it. Polite but honest. Likely they already know the compensation rates aren't fair, but they've been too busy to do anything about the inequity and/or they've just been waiting til you made a fuss about it.

Of course, the major kink in all this is that you plan to leave for med school in - what - 5 months? I doubt you'll have much luck if this is the case. I mean, it likely would take a month for HR to kick a raise into effect and by that point...well...you know.

Regardless, it can't hurt to ask and see how they respond. If you have a supportive supervisor, they likely will care about you being happy, whether or not they can do anything about it this late in the game (if it is common knowledge you are checking out for med school soon). But if they can make the change, a few more bucks per hour for 4-5 months is better than none. So go ahead and schedule that brief sit-down meeting with your boss or supervisor. You'll never know if you don't ask.

Thanks. That's the kind of answer I was looking for.