Gary Will's WORKSEARCH:
Selling Yourself To An Employer
Chapter 16: (continued)
How to handle salary questions
From the book How to Prepare for an Employment Interview.
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[Chapter 16: continued from here
]
...No one can force you to accept an offer you don't like-as long as you're willing to walk away. But if you're not willing to walk away, you have to accept the possibility that you may end up accepting less than you think you're worth.
Consider your alternatives without being too optimistic or too pessimistic.
The employer's interests and your own are not as adversarial as they may seem. They don't want to pay more than they have to, but neither do they want the much higher costs that a dissatisfied employee may create. Neither of you wants to go through all this over again a few months down the road-you looking for a new employer and the employer hiring a new employee.
If you do receive a low offer, but not so low that you'd reject it, try to arrange for a salary review after six months or perhaps some incentives or bonuses for performance. Whatever offer you negotiate, you should get it in writing-or write it down yourself and send it to the employer (or even better, get them to sign it).
What do you do if you have no idea what a fair salary would be? You'll have to do some research. The best approach is to call some people currently working in the same area and ask them what the salary ranges are. You could also call your local Canada Employment Centre. They have salary data on many different occupations.
PREPARATION LIST-Salary questions
What salary range would you expect from this position?
What factors would you consider in determining what salary you would accept within that range?
[Next: Chapter 17: Beyond the answers-image and presentation ]
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