Getting a Job through a Recruiter

I was wondering if there are any downsides to getting a job through a recruiter? I remember reading somewhere that you will get paid significantly less. I don't know if that's true so I figured I'd ask on here.

I just spoke with a recruiter who contacted me and he seems like a genuinely good guy and wants to help me get a job. Unfortunately, he was looking to fill a full time Help Desk position ASAP which I wouldn't be able to do because I am still in school full time. He was saying that the position would pay around $50k and this is around the Maryland area. That is a pretty good starting salary but I was thinking that he would probably get a cut of that right?

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powdered toast man

Yes the cut would already be factored in to the pay you are getting. There is a chance you could get a direct hire within that company after a while of working there and your salary will increase.

danny069

Usually recruiters work for a third party company (consulting companies), sometimes the recruiter works directly for the company (which is better in my opinion) because you want to get hired directly for the company because you get their benefits, medical, 401k, etc. If the recruiter said 50k, then that would be your salary, he or she will not take a cut out of that 50k. The actual company pays these third party consulting companies to do the work for them, interviews, background checks, etc. For example a bank has a contract with a third party consulting company to hire IT workers, the bank pays $75,000 per person to the consulting company, the consulting company pays you $50,000. The same with hourly, the bank may pay the consulting company $30/hr, and then you get $15/hr. The bank saves money because they are not paying into your benefits. You could purchase your benefits through the hiring company you are working for. I worked for a financial company back in 2004 in NYC, but I did not get paid by them, I got paid by the consulting company. I suppose its fine when you're younger, but as you start to age, you need medical benefits, and a retirement plan, which are usually better if you get hired by the actual company and not a consulting company. A consulting company may pay a high salary to compensate for the loss of benefits. These are some questions you can ask your recruiter and see what the responses are.

powdered toast man

^ that is a much more detailed response lol

N2IT

Industry standard, the recruiting agency takes ~62% of the rate, this is a national average that was disclosed to me from a national account manager, the type who staff augs and builds relationships with VMO's.

I honestly think this comes down to negotiations. Sure they are only able to pay X, but they usually have a larger margin than people are led to believe. I've always made more money working for recruiting agencies, but usually receive terrible benefits. My wife works so in my situation that is okay, she gets nice benefits from the hospital.

50,000 for starting is great, and hopefully the environment is just as good. Of course he will get a cut, but when you roll off (if you roll of) the contract onto a FTE position, they will no longer make money of off you.

hurricane1091

I was hired through an intern company (in reality the intern company failed to find someone and the company I work for did their own interviews, but I get paid through the intern company) and am getting $14/hr but was offered $12/hr. Was just offered $37,500/yr last week which is ~$18/hr. So you can assume the intern company was at least getting $4/hr out of me, if not more. My job title is changing though too so not sure how that factors in.

overthetop

Long Story short:

1. I see you have Network+. If it were me I would take the job for the experience and experience only. We all know you'll get screwed money wise but its kind of hard to negotiate with just Network+ (no offense)

marcj04

overthetop wrote: »

Long Story short:

1. I see you have Network+. If it were me I would take the job for the experience and experience only. We all know you'll get screwed money wise but its kind of hard to negotiate with just Network+ (no offense)

I actually had to turn it down due to the position being full time and it would have conflicted with my school schedule. I definitely felt that $50k was pretty fair but I was just curious if they take a cut of your pay. He was pretty persistent to get me to take the job and he wants to keep in touch. He was definitely a good guy but I wasn't sure if the reason he was so persistent was because he would get a substantial cut from my pay.

hurricane1091

marcj04 wrote: »

I actually had to turn it down due to the position being full time and it would have conflicted with my school schedule. I definitely felt that $50k was pretty fair but I was just curious if they take a cut of your pay. He was pretty persistent to get me to take the job and he wants to keep in touch. He was definitely a good guy but I wasn't sure if the reason he was so persistent was because he would get a substantial cut from my pay.

Considering I have experience, 2 degrees, and multiple certs and will be making $37,500/yr in a position above what you are mentioning, it's hard to fathom even questioning if the salary is fair. His cut was probably factored in, but even if he took $15k from that number it would still be more than fair for where you are at in the IT field.

I would not worry about the money at this point in time. Some people here will make 10-12$/hr their first job with an MCSA and Bachelor's. Others will have just an AS and A+/Net+ and make $50k/yr. Comparing yourself to others here will drive you insane. Do I think $37,500/yr + bonus is slightly low? Sure, but it's way better than what I was getting through the intern company. And I'm going back to school so it's whatever. Fully expect to be able to find a job paying 50-65k in 2016 once I get my degree. I could probably do this job elsewhere now for $50k/yr if I had more experience or a Bachelor's, but I have neither. Which is why I'm working on getting both

no!all!

I'm a contractor in the Baltimore area, have been for almost 3 years. I'd avoid going through recruiters unless you absolutely have to. If you have to go through one don't be afraid to ask for more money. They'll definitely try to get you for the lowest amount obviously. Recruiters try to take you out to lunch once a month to jazz things up. Just be careful is all I'm saying. Good luck!

marcj04

hurricane1091 wrote: »

Considering I have experience, 2 degrees, and multiple certs and will be making $37,500/yr in a position above what you are mentioning, it's hard to fathom even questioning if the salary is fair. His cut was probably factored in, but even if he took $15k from that number it would still be more than fair for where you are at in the IT field.

I would not worry about the money at this point in time. Some people here will make 10-12$/hr their first job with an MCSA and Bachelor's. Others will have just an AS and A+/Net+ and make $50k/yr. Comparing yourself to others here will drive you insane. Do I think $37,500/yr + bonus is slightly low? Sure, but it's way better than what I was getting through the intern company. And I'm going back to school so it's whatever. Fully expect to be able to find a job paying 50-65k in 2016 once I get my degree. I could probably do this job elsewhere now for $50k/yr if I had more experience or a Bachelor's, but I have neither. Which is why I'm working on getting both

I am sure it has a lot to do with the area too. I'm near the DC area which has a high cost of living. Luckily, I live right outside it where the cost of living is lower but I am able to commute into the city.

Good luck to you! I am sure you will no doubt find a higher paying job. It's all about being proactive. As long as you put in the work, you will achieve what ever you put your mind to

d3rail

I wouldn't worry too much about the recruiter's cut, particularly when you consider how nice it can be to have someone negotiate salary on your behalf. My girlfriend and I both got our post-college jobs through recruiters and in both cases the recruiter negotiated a substantially higher salary than we were even willing to ask for.

Based on our experiences I'd definitely recommend using as many recruiter's as are willing to work with you. The only exception would be if you and your skills are in very high demand and you can definitely negotiate a great deal for yourself, but I don't think that applies to too many people.

hurricane1091

marcj04 wrote: »

I am sure it has a lot to do with the area too. I'm near the DC area which has a high cost of living. Luckily, I live right outside it where the cost of living is lower but I am able to commute into the city.

Good luck to you! I am sure you will no doubt find a higher paying job. It's all about being proactive. As long as you put in the work, you will achieve what ever you put your mind to

I work in the city of Philadelphia and live in NJ. Cost of living here is high unfortunately

Chevel

Stay away very seldom can something good from them. Blowing up your phone and e-mails with low end jobs and salaries. Or worse yet jobs that are not even there.