Can I discuss salary with other people in my office

Ema of 5

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:01 am

sarandipity101 wrote:

By asking for what other coworkers got, you are not going to look like a chazer. Please remember that you need to be your best advocate. Your boss is trying to get away with the least possible. Ask for the most you can. Smile

just my 2 cents.

Exactly. It is not “being a chazer” to ask for a comparable salary.

heidi

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:25 am

WhatFor wrote:

In most of western culture, it is considered inappropriate and crass to ask someone what their salary is.

You may be able to get away with asking something like, "how much do you think the average (job title) at our company is earning?" but I would personally feel too uncomfortable to ask that. There are other ways to figure out what people in your field and location are making generally.

If you're in the U.S. the DOL tracks wage levels based on employment and area. Sites like glassdoor might have anecdotal information.

So funny- today my coworker and I compared paystubs- we're in Israel LOL

amother

Maple

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:27 am

amother OP wrote:

Before I ask for a raise I’d like to know what coworkers doing similar work and working similar hours are making. Or even just knowing how much of a raise they asked for and received each year, etc.

Is it ok for me to ask them privately?

I won’t use this info when meeting with the boss but I would like to make a request that is as high as possible within reason. For example if everyone got a raise of 10k I’d like to ask for 7-10k and not 5 k.
If everyone got closer to 5 k I’d ask for a lower amount

This would be grounds for dismissal from your job. It is likely in your employee handbook that you may not discuss salary with co workers. this is standard in corporate culture. Ask at your own risk

amother

Babypink

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:29 am

I wouldn’t want to answer that question, but I would be fine answering a question like “what do you think most people with my skills and experience are being paid?” as long as you explained why you were asking.

amother

Almond

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:30 am

amother Maple wrote:

This would be grounds for dismissal from your job. It is likely in your employee handbook that you may not discuss salary with co workers. this is standard in corporate culture. Ask at your own risk

It is not standard in the “corporate culture” most big Manhattan companies have chats where they discuss salary. It’s all public knowledge. There are sites that post it too.

Amarante

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:33 am

amother Maple wrote:

This would be grounds for dismissal from your job. It is likely in your employee handbook that you may not discuss salary with co workers. this is standard in corporate culture. Ask at your own risk

If anyone fired someone for asking about salary, they would face a lawsuit because you can't control people discussing stuff.

The only thing you can control is if people are sharing confidential information. For example, if someone in HR leaked salary spread sheet they could be fired. But you can't fire someone for telling another person how much they make. Nor can you fire someone for asking.

However as most people have posted, it would be viewed as very inappropriate to ask a co-worker what their salary was. There have been suggestions as to how to reach the issue tactfully and one can attempt it using a polite way which doesn't put someone on the spot to reveal private information or turn you down. Or if you are lucky - as I was once - you will have such good friends in your department that you do share the information to help each other,

Duh

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:34 am

amother OP wrote:

I’m not super close with the others there but they’re all nice people and I’m sure would be happy to help me out. Is it better if I don’t ask what they’re making but ask how much of a raise is fair to ask?
Or should I ask the HR person (I am friendly with her) if she can help me figure out what’s a fair ask?

Nothing wrong with asking co-workers how much of a raise is fair to ask. You're asking for their opinion, not personal info.

amother

Maple

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:35 am

amother Almond wrote:

It is not standard in the “corporate culture” most big Manhattan companies have chats where they discuss salary. It’s all public knowledge. There are sites that post it too.

You’re right! I take it back. Seems employers are not allowed to restrict talking about salary

amother

Grape

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 10:39 am

amother Maple wrote:

You’re right! I take it back. Seems employers are not allowed to restrict talking about salary

Yes and the reason for that rule is because restricting salary information leads to exploitation of employees

amother

Seablue

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:18 am

amother Grape wrote:

Yes and the reason for that rule is because restricting salary information leads to exploitation of employees

Yes. I work for a frum organization and when I negotiated salary increase with the head honcho, he made it very clear the at I MAY NOT discuss it with other employees, that I am making the MOST in my department, etc etc
Confused

Hmmm. No way to prove that one!

Amarante

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:22 am

amother Seablue wrote:

Hmmm. No way to prove that one!

Either way you spin it, it is a way to keep workers in the dark and thus be able to treat them unfairly.

He could be lying to you by stroking your ego and telling you that you are the most highly paid person and that knowledge of this would make other people jealous. In which case he is manipulating you and says this to everyone.

Or he is telling you the truth and that as a new hire, you are being paid more than anyone else. So what he is saying is that he underpays other people who might be more experience and/or have at least the same skill set and have been working for the company longer.

In either scenario, it underscores why salary secrecy is generally not to the advantage of most workers.

vintagebknyc

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:26 am

amother Seablue wrote:

Hmmm. No way to prove that one!

amother

Seashell

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:29 am

amother Maple wrote:

This would be grounds for dismissal from your job. It is likely in your employee handbook that you may not discuss salary with co workers. this is standard in corporate culture. Ask at your own risk

I was going to mention this.
there might be a policy in place - check your employee handbook or ask HR

amother

Steelblue

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:29 am

Op I work in HR. It doesn’t help to know raise amounts because if you started making 45k a year two years ago and they bumped you to 53k last year on your anniversary and another person started 1 year ago and is making 60k due to inflation then she may only get a 2k raise but you should be getting a much bigger raise due to inflation. In other words just knowing raise amounts without the context of salary is not helpful

amother

Birch

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 11:35 am

Also, you kind of need to be prepared to actually leave that job. Otherwise the employer can just say no to your raise, and you have no choice but to be okay. My husband hates change and hates switching jobs. So he can kick and scream for years about his salary, but unless he tries to find another job then I don’t think there is anything he can do. Also, there is a penalty if you started years ago, because inflation and the market have raised wages for new hires … and they might be making more than someone who is there 10 years.

amother

Freesia

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 12:00 pm

amother Birch wrote:

Your can ask for a raise and be prepared for a no without wanting to leave the job.
There is Nothing wrong with asking.

amother

Gold

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 12:01 pm

amother Seablue wrote:

Hmmm. No way to prove that one!

As someone who has a job where I need to offer rates to service providers we are hiring, I do sometimes make it clear to the provider that there is a standard amount we offer and we are offering them more than that thanks to the experience or special skills they are bringing to the table, but that we would not appreciate them sharing that number around because it will just make a lot of trouble with the other providers. Meaning, understand that there is a range, you're getting at the upper end because of YOUR set of circumstances, but if you make it rough for us by opening doors with other employees who don't have your skills or experience but will still want your rate and be all upset when we say no, we really won't be so interested in working with you anymore. Like, be discreet. You're getting a better deal, don't ruin it.

amother

Sun, Apr 23 2023, 1:11 pm

amother Steelblue wrote:

I would ask those who started similar time to me or before.
What you posted is very similar to my situation. I started just before inflation hit like crazy