How do you determine if you are being paid adequately?

[lovetotravel]

How do you determine if you are being paid adequately? I come at this from the position of making a nice salary and I get a small raise every year and I usually get a great bonus if the company has a good year. My total compensation (salary plus bonus) has doubled in the eight years that I have had this job. After reading about all of the people who haven’t had raises in years, I feel that I can’t really complain and I am thankful to have such a rewarding job with 2 great bosses. I mentioned to a friend of mine recently that I have had the same job for 8 years with no promotion and she told me I was crazy and being taken advantage of. I work with men and I suspect that their salaries are higher than mine. I’ve been with the company longer, but they have a couple of more years of experience. I make a six figure salary in a job that has been fun and family friendly (I have young children) but I want to be compensated fairly at market rates. I’ve looked at sites like salary.com and according to that I am grossly underpaid. I also read that I should find out what similar jobs at similar companies pay, I have no idea how to find that out. How do people find this information out, do you ask people/friends/acquaintances/strangers how much they make?
Thanks for any insight.
-Traveler

[sweeps]

The salary surveys are usually too vague and unscientific to be of any use. One easy way to get a comparison is to contact a headhunter and ask about jobs similar to yours -- you can find out what other employers are paying for the same type of work. That's the real market rate. Be sure to look at total compensation, not just salary.

Having said that -- you seem to be happy and content with what you're doing and making (what you think is) a nice salary. Comparing yourself to the Joneses can quickly get you into trouble. (This is a prime example of why don't think compensation should be discussed between coworkers -- see other thread.)

[Caoineag]

I agree that you should pay attention to total compensation. Technically, I am underpaid in my current position but I work for a small firm, get lots of nice perk and a laid back environment. I have decided that the salary isn't my primary motivator so I am happy. Usually, the larger the company, the more they can pay but do you really want the environment that comes with that pay?

I don't know what position you currently have but searching help wanted ads can give you an idea since they will post a range with the job description usually.

[Ima saver]

My husband is a builder and works by the hour. I have been told that he does not charge enough. Does anyone know what a builder (he also does the plumbing, electrical, builds the cabinets, does the hardwood floor, the painting, the trim and all the tile work. In other words,almost everything but sheet rock) should charge an hour??

[zetta]

If you have a coworker who is also a friend you can trust, you might mention that you were playing around on salary.com and it indicated you were grossly underpaid. You can ask him if his impression is that salary.com is accurate or too high for your area. Maybe it will lead to a comparison of figures, or not. Or ask what sort of range he would expect someone with your years of experience to be making -- if you're outside that range, consider making a case for a bigger raise at your next review.

[DebbieL]

I take all those sites like salary.com with a huge grain of salt. According to it I'm also GROSSLY underpaid. However, I know my town, and I see what businesses want to pay people for my type of work - it doesn't come anywhere NEAR what those sites say is average. It's also hard to get an exact match to your position, etc. Too many variables for it to be accurate in many cases.

[lovetotravel]

Thanks for all of the replies. I definitely take factors like being able to wear shorts, a t-shirt and flip flops in my office into account. I used to wear a suit everyday . I think I will talk to a head-hunter and maybe talk to friends of friends who do similar type jobs. I'd like to know if my salary is far below market. Who knows maybe I could end up negotiating a raise that would allow for a little more travel!

[Gruntina]

My husband is a builder and works by the hour. I have been told that he does not charge enough. Does anyone know what a builder (he also does the plumbing, electrical, builds the cabinets, does the hardwood floor, the painting, the trim and all the tile work. In other words,almost everything but sheet rock) should charge an hour??

Hi Ima-

What your husband charges by the hour, does it include the description above with the materials that goes into the house or is it just labor cost?

Personally I think he is not charging enough because he is way more than a laboror, he has incredible knowlege and master everything in building a house (except sheetrock which I dont blame him, we just did that ourself at our house and wow it sure is a lot more tough than it looks to make the mudwork smooth).

Normally a person in charge of building a house earns more than that just by telling hired laborors what to do.

[Fern]

You say you make a 6 figure salary but your friend says if you've gotten no promotion, they're taking advantage of you??

For me, the salary is far more important than any job title. You haven't mentioned much abou tthe cmpany, but if it's a small company, maybe your position has no natural step up?

It really depends on what part of the country you live in, and even within my own state, for instance, salaries vary widely for the same job, based on the regional area you work in.

Talking to headhunters is a good idea.

[Ima saver]

Gruntina, he has been charging by the hour just for his labor. I know he saves the customers lots of money cause plumbers and electricans charge a lot of money. He can build all the kitchen cabinets and bathroom cabinets in an entire house for around $8000. (and this is a big house) That is material and labor, everything.

[lovetotravel]

You say you make a 6 figure salary but your friend says if you've gotten no promotion, they're taking advantage of you??

For me, the salary is far more important than any job title. You haven't mentioned much abou tthe cmpany, but if it's a small company, maybe your position has no natural step up?

It really depends on what part of the country you live in, and even within my own state, for instance, salaries vary widely for the same job, based on the regional area you work in.

Talking to headhunters is a good idea.

I work for a large corporation where titles are very important, but like you I have always been more concerned with my pay. There is plenty of room for advancement. In my company people often apply for new jobs with other companies and threaten to leave if they don't get a promotion. I never did that because I was never really prepared to leave, I am generally happy with my job. Now I have two thoughts- maybe I should have pushed harder for a promotion over the years and I am starting to think that I am not even being paid the market rate for my position.

There are a few other companies in the same industry in my city, I would like to try and find out the salaries that they offer for someone in my position with my level of experience. It is just awkward to ask people what they earn.