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salary negotiation?

QuantumKnight

I live in the ohio valley region. At the contract job I work I get paid between $15-$17 per hour and work mainly with active director and unix. If I get hired on full time what would be a good hourly wage? I have a family and have to deal with medical bills and schooling. Does that effect my negotiations?

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Comments

coreyb80

I would check the local comps in your area to get an idea of the average pay for such a position.

Akaricloud

It really depends on your experience, location and the position. Your needs don't really matter in this type of negotiation; they can find someone else without medical and school bills if need be. If you want to try to negotiate for more then do it, but you don't need to give them the personal details behind your decision.

TheCudder

Akaricloud wrote: »

If you want to try to negotiate for more then do it, but you don't need to give them the personal details behind your decision.

This. They don't care about your needs, they are paying you for your skills and value to the company, not to take care of your family.

Nemowolf

Negotiate with the idea that your selling yourself, skills, knowledge, and projected gains from your own growth that apply to their business. Why would they pay you anymore than your already receiving to do the same job you already do? That doesnt make any sense from a business prospective.

One tactic or angle to attack this is show what you have done for them over your contract period and what you can offer as a perm employee such as any certifications you have been studying for or earned during your time there. Show them how their paying you more can be reflected in the "more" work you will get done.

Mike-Mike

i suck at negotations, but anytime i've gone from contract to perm, it's only been a few dollars more... roughly a $2 raise

Mrock4

I've experienced the opposite, generally contract to perm results in a slight reduction in pay, because the company is now incurring more overhead with you as a full-time employee (healthcare costs, unemployment, 401k, etc)..so I've generally had them offer 5-15% less to go permanent. As a result, I've never accepted the perm positions in that situation.

As a tip, and to piggyback off what others have mentioned, it doesn't matter WHY you need more money..we all do. What matters to them, is you justify why you should earn that money. For example, you make near $35k now and want $45k (just an example)..

BAD: "I really want to be at 45k because I think I've earned it"

GOOD: "Ideally, I'd like to end up around 45k/annually, because I feel that based on comparable positions in the area, that is a fair market value for someone with a similar skillset"

The difference between the two is one just states "I think...", while the other qualifies that salary you're requesting.

MiikeB

When moving contract to perm it is usually only a couple dollars more, and sometimes even a small pay cut in my experience. While your company did have to pay the contracting company some amount more than you were getting, by bringing you on as an employee they have a whole new set of taxes and benefits to pay too.

QuantumKnight

Thank you all for the response I will be taking all of this into account. Your information has shed light for me. Thanks

IT_Nerd

Good question. I would like to add another question. Say you will be doing the job as a contract to hire. Is it better negotiate the salary with the recruiter after you have received the job offer or before? Also what's the proper etiquette about going this? Face to face? Phone? Email? I would assume face to face but I'm curious.

networker050184

Usually salary is discussed before an official offer as the offer will have to contain the agreed upon salary.

I've always done it over the phone, but if they have a chance to sit down with you face to face that would be good as well. Email is a little too slow and impersonal for something like this IMO.

Cherper

One thing I have learned in salary negotiations, is it is easier to negotiate down than up. If they give a range, start at the top and negotiate from there.

NetworkVeteran

+1 "Usually salary is discussed before an official offer as the offer will have to contain the agreed upon salary."

I would ensure the salary you expect is within their ballpark before going to an interview--why waste either parties' time if the role won't meet your needs? I find the best time to get more specific is near the end of the interview or in the day or two after, when you've each a good idea of what the other is bringing to the table.

Typically, in my experience, the employer or recruiter brings this topic up themselves.

jibbajabba

Funny, in the UK you are always better off as a contractor. Most contractor have their own one-man company and the daily rate and considered corporate tax / income tax (since you pay yourself minimum wage and then dividens), usually ends up being a lot better. Guess it is differently in the US.

Hypntick

Yeah in the US, being contract normally means no paid time off, no sick time, and sometimes crappy health benefits. But then again, most contractors here go through an agency to represent them. While I may be paid X for my work through that agency, the agency is charging the client 2x or more that amount. When I found out what I was being billed at for my overtime work, I was pretty shocked actually.

Bokeh

The 2x your pay is very common when dealing with recruiters. I did that gig for a year, and that was always the case. The extra cost was to help cover the recruiting firms expenses that the employer would normally be paying if the person was on their payroll as a full time employee. Some agencies work for less, but the larger ones are typically 2x your hourly rate.

theanimal

Bokeh wrote: »

The 2x your pay is very common when dealing with recruiters. I did that gig for a year, and that was always the case. The extra cost was to help cover the recruiting firms expenses that the employer would normally be paying if the person was on their payroll as a full time employee. Some agencies work for less, but the larger ones are typically 2x your hourly rate.

Wow that's shocking, I'm just curious why don't they just seek the employees themselves? Do they simply not want to have to deal with the weeding out applicant process? I mean I've seen some of the positions through recruiters in the MD area for NOCs paying 60-65k. I can't imagine why a company would want to pay 120-130k for a NOC.

Hypntick

Yeah my OT rate was pretty nice to me, I found out that the group I was going through was charging around $140 an hour for my OT. Needless to say if it looked like I was going to go over 40 hours, I was asked to cut out early if I could.