Pay review time
Many of you are starting to pluck up the courage to ask for a pay rise. Some companies hold pay reviews on an employee's anniversary and some foreign-owned companies run to a calendar year. Most Australian companies run to a financial year, which means talking to staff in May and June about salary. Any pay rise will then show up in your bank account after July 1 - the new financial year.
In a recent CareerOne survey on personal finance, almost half of the respondents told us they needed a salary increase of 5 per cent or above to avoid going backwards financially.
I sympathise but I've been reading the signs and I predict employers are going to take a conservative approach on pay as the economy slows. I've seen stories about cost cutting including companies making top executives fly economy (shame) and employers withdrawing freebies like coffee and tea.
While cutting a few kitchen cookies is hardly dramatic cost cutting, it's certainly a psychological message to all that belts are being tightened. Added to this, we have heard the chair of the Reserve Bank call for wage restraint to curb inflation. That should not stop you asking for a pay rise.
Start by reading "How to pitch for a pay rise", which you will find on the CareerOne website in the Job Hunting Advice area. The story provides step-by-step advice on making an unemotional, business-like pitch for more money. Also take into account that many companies give standard CPI, which for the March quarter was 4.2 per cent.
More on pay next week, specifically putting a price on the "intangibles".
In a recent CareerOne survey on personal finance, almost half of the respondents told us they needed a salary increase of 5 per cent or above to avoid going backwards financially.
I sympathise but I've been reading the signs and I predict employers are going to take a conservative approach on pay as the economy slows. I've seen stories about cost cutting including companies making top executives fly economy (shame) and employers withdrawing freebies like coffee and tea.
While cutting a few kitchen cookies is hardly dramatic cost cutting, it's certainly a psychological message to all that belts are being tightened. Added to this, we have heard the chair of the Reserve Bank call for wage restraint to curb inflation. That should not stop you asking for a pay rise.
Start by reading "How to pitch for a pay rise", which you will find on the CareerOne website in the Job Hunting Advice area. The story provides step-by-step advice on making an unemotional, business-like pitch for more money. Also take into account that many companies give standard CPI, which for the March quarter was 4.2 per cent.
More on pay next week, specifically putting a price on the "intangibles".
