How to find out how much you should be earning

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November 15 2019
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You may have a high salary compared with your co-workers, but your pay could also be lower despite your workload and responsibilities when compared with your industry peers.

How to find out how much you should be earning

If you want to know whether you’re earning the industry standard or it’s time to negotiate a pay rise, you need to find out your role’s value by researching what your peers make.

How to find out what your peers are earning

You need to know how much other people in a similar role actually make instead of making assumptions. Find out how much your peers make by researching the current market price.

You can do this in three ways:

Ask your peers
Consider asking the salaries of people with the same role and level of experience. They don’t have to be your co-workers – in fact, you may get a better idea of the industry standard by asking peers from different companies.

If you don’t know enough people in the same role to come up with a precise salary range, consider asking other people in online professional forums.
Consult recruiters
You may ask headhunters or recruiters for information about the salary range that companies are willing to give for your role.
Research online
If you’re not comfortable with asking people directly, you may consider looking up the salary range of your role online.

Sites like Glassdoor and PayScale offer salary reports of various roles in different locations. You may simply look up comparisons or pay for a more detailed report.

You may also look through job boards and take note of the salary range companies offer.

What is your value based on your seniority?

You may have the same role as other people, but your salary may be higher or lower than others because of seniority.

Your salary should generally be higher compared with your colleagues if your relevant credentials are better than theirs or you have been working in the company longer than others.

For instance, you may be given a higher salary if you have a master’s degree or certifications that are relevant to your role. Having relevant experience in your field of work or leading a team of employees can result in a higher pay.

You may also gain seniority and higher pay over other employees if you have been working for the company longer than others.

However, seniority only increases in value if the employer considers it as a deciding factor in employment-related decisions.

If you work in a company or organisation that has a seniority-based pay scale and you have the credentials to be considered as a senior employee, you may expect to have a higher value. But if your employer uses a performance-based pay scale, your value will depend on your contributions.

About the author

Louise is a content producer for Momentum Media’s nestegg who likes keeping up-to-date with all the ways people can work towards financial stability in 2019. She also enjoys turning complex information into easy-to-digest, practical tips to help those who want to achieve financial independence.

About the author

Louise is a content producer for Momentum Media’s nestegg who likes keeping up-to-date with all the ways people can work towards financial stability in 2019. She also enjoys turning complex information into easy-to-digest, practical tips to help those who want to achieve financial independence.

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