!!!!!!

[judecorp]

Today I found out that my coworker (and office mate) who started at my agency a week after me makes $6000 more a year that I do. $6000!

!!!!!!

She has a Master's Degree in Counseling and is an LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor). I have a Master's in Social Work and am an LSW (Licensed Social Worker).

Okay, what the fuckity fuck fuck fuck is up with that??!?!

Comments

[elspazz0.livejournal.com]

does she have more work experience?

also, before you freak out, its possible that she just negotiated a better deal than you. most companies will offer less than they think you are worth and see if you take it. then you negotiate upwards from there. it's possible she was just a really hardcore negotiator. i only negotiated about $2500 extra out of my current bosses.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_epiphany_girl_/]

WTF???? Are those degrees really that different? Can you talk to them and ask for a raise?

I'm so sorry! That's completely cracked out.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

No, she doesn't have more work experience. She has a little more training, but it was entirely negotiation. She went in saying that she wouldn't leave her current job unless she made X money. Unfortunately, I didn't really have that sort of leverage.

I'm just so furious, because when I got my (really low) offer, I counter-offered with something about $2K under her, and they counter-offered me with what I ended up taking. But what burns me up is that they told me (when I was counter-offering) that they were just plain unable to offer more money because of the economy and blah blah blah, and that the range wasn't that high.

I am so furious.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

No. As far as work goes, the degrees are pretty similar... and my licensure actually goes further than hers because a lot of people don't know what an LPC does. (She is the only LPC in our agency, actually.)

I don't know if I have a leg to stand on as far as asking for a raise, because I'm on probation until the end of March. I'm wondering if I should wait until they've spent all the money putting me through all the state-wide CORE trainings, and /then/ ask.

But I'm debating saying something /tomorrow/, because I was so horrified. I can't believe they couldn't give me what I asked for as a salary, but they are giving her $3K more than I even asked for.

[iansha.livejournal.com]

Damn. That's a HUNK of money.
Y'all don't have a 'you can't talk about money' clause, do you?

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well, I haven't ever received an employee handbook, but I called one of my other coworkers (who I trash talk everyone with, so we have strict confidentiality) and she said that some of the people at work are really angsty about workers talking about money.

I don't know if it's an official /policy/, but it's apparently unofficial, and there's a whole obnoxious range of salaries. *grump*

My plan, I think, is to wait until they've spent all the money sending me through 120 hours of CORE and /then/ saying I need more money to stay.

[iansha.livejournal.com]

I might also bring it up in Supervision (You say you like her, right?) and express your upset at being told that a higher salary 'couldn't be afforded' when in fact, someone hired after you was offered significantly more money.

Some places are REALLY uptight about the money talk. Outside of supervision (and this coworker) I would keep zipped.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Problem with the Supervision angle: the other person with the BIG BUCKS is on my team, too. I wouldn't want to put my supervisor in an awkward position.

"that guy"

[volumeat11.livejournal.com]

Um...I don't mean to be "that guy," but it's all about negotiating your salary. I got an extra $5000 per year that way. Melis...$3500.

You may hate us now. I am "that guy."

[mightywombat.livejournal.com]

Better contract negotiator?

[mayna.livejournal.com]

Once you go through the CORE trainings, you can say you're worth more because you passed the trainings. Unfortunately, pointing fingers at what other people are making doesn't work (from all the stuff I've read) even if it's damned unfair and that they basically lied to you. Maybe it's time to start job hunting again?

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Ugh. I so loathe job hunting. But I'm going to keep my eyes open for something good.

Re: "that guy"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I would never hate you. You can just buy me dinner next time I'm in town. ;)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Yep. And was employed at the time, so she wasn't as desperate.

[ae-osu.livejournal.com]

You didn't sign a contract did you? I know that it happened somewhere else.. not mentioned here of course, that someone went through the training and then quit shortly afterwards. Now that company is suing the person because they basically took the training without utilizing it for the companies benefit.

[mayna.livejournal.com]

You can also use the same negotiation techniques that your coworker did. :-) Jobs always seem to be more agreeable to paying just a little bit more than your current job.

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

That's the thing. They /are/ paying more than my last job.

[mayna.livejournal.com]

So your next job'll pay even more! :-)

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Way to be optimistic!

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

I didn't sign any sort of contract that said I had any obligations if I completed training. But that is a really good question, because I know that happens in some places.

Thanks for your help!

Re: "that guy"

[volumeat11.livejournal.com]

You are on...on one condition: Melis is still employed. She'll be working for someone or something else after Christmas, due to their company being run by a flock of morons -- yes, I still say "Christmas" rather than "the Holidays." I will not let liberals destroy that aspect of my life...but I digress. So, we'll have to see what her employment sit'ch is. I'll keep you posted.

Re: "that guy"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Okay - condition noted.

p.s. Liberals aren't destroying any aspect of your life. By calling a time of year (when there are multiple holidays) "the holidays," that doesn't take away anything from you or from Christmas.

Re: "that guy"

[volumeat11.livejournal.com]

p.p.s. Ah, but they are, only that's a different story altogether. It's not a bad thing to be "the holidays," it's just that in my twisted head, "Christmas" is what I grew up with; watching a Charlie Brown Christmas and Garfield's Christmas and even The Simpson's Christmas. I understand that diversity is what makes America great, and I'm all for it. But to me, in my head, that time of the year is Christmas. It's what I grew up with; it's what I know. If the rest of the planet decides to start calling that time "the holidays" for whatever reason, then go for it. I guess I'm perticularly itchy about this because a former evil boss (an angry, extremely bitchy male) would always yell and demand we call it "the holidays." Demanding. Yelling. That's the perfect way to convince a young college kid to do something. So, he has his holidays, and I have my Christmas, and I haven't seen him in years and hope he fell prey to a vicious Vaseline accident, and we're both just fine like that.

Wow. Was that a bit much, or what. I think I need more coffee...

Re: "that guy"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Well, I would definitely say demanding and yelling is a little much, if not terribly unproductive. Because people probably would have been more likely to comply without the yelling.

Aaah, management!

Re: "that guy"

[volumeat11.livejournal.com]

why, yes, people would have. It just sucked hard raw ass because we were all freshman at big Northeastern University and we were working as the maintenance crew (A.K.A. cheap labor via "work study") at Matthews Arena which is where the hockey and stuff happened and the boss was more like a Pit Boss or Slave Driver or something and it was fall semester and Christmas rolled around and I was on the schedule to work the day BEFORE AND AFTER Christmas and I'm like no way José and he's all yeah you are and then I didn't and I got a different job for the winter semester (because spring semester was way away and NU had quarters instead of semesters). Was that sentence run-ony enough?

Time for more coffee...

Re: "that guy"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Was that sentence run-ony enough?

No. Try harder. ;)

Re: "that guy"

[volumeat11.livejournal.com]

Okay...

So it's tuesday morning which is usually a bad thing only today is sorta different because my boss isn't here today because she's wicked pregnant and she has to go see a doctor and have a needle the size of Chile put in her for something I don't know much about because it's a chick-thing but not to say it's not a guy thing it's just that pregnancy isn't something I know a heck of a lot about sort of like quantum physics only different so I don't have to do a lot of work of work today which is a nice break/change because yesterday I had my head up my arse with work and it was making me sick or illin' but not like the Beastie Boys "Licence to Ill" type illin' because that's a good illin' unlike my whiney-ass co-worker overhere who's like almost 60 and she sounds like Gilda Radner whining ALL THE FREAKIN' TIME and it's enough to want to dump Kaluha or Bailey's or both in my coffee which if you can't tell I think I need more of so if you'll excuse me...

Re: "that guy"

[judecorp.livejournal.com]

Dude, you're awesome!