I was an hourly employee for 10+ years... then BANG! Oh, the shock
of making a change.....
The last 3 years of being paid hourly, of which, I devoted 2,080 hours plus,
I averaged 750 hours / year of OT (min. - time and 1/2 - some double time).
avg. 3% per
year - C. o L.
I was negotiating a large pay raise (after being there 3 1/2 years, I had a
30% bump offered by the competition). I was happy with the Company (at the
time), so when they offered to match it - I stayed. I was the first AutoCAD
user that they had and helped to establish the CAD standards for the
department. We grew the department from 3 draftsmen to 12 (during the busy
season - 5 when normal work load). I was handling multi-million dollar
projects for them and enjoyed the challenge. One catch though (which became
significant) - they wanted me to go salary. Well I worked 5-6 months a year
doing 80+ hour weeks and the rest were 40's. I wanted to reduce my hours a
bit, so I could explore "other things" besides work. (a.k.a. have a social
life) LOL
I looked at the numbers; rolled them around in my head for a couple of days
and then decided that I would take it. I told them that I wouldn't work 55
hours a week MAX. during our normal "busy time" and 40 hours, for the
remaining time. My responsibilities had increased from Senior Draftsman to
Project Manager level (with some IT/ CAD management too). They also said
that I would be eligible for performance bonuses too (to help make up for
the slight pay decrease going to salary). Well, it was 6 months before X-mas
and Bonus time. I worked "my buns off" to show them that I could take on
everything they threw at me and more... In the busy time (we were slammed
for 6 months) and I put in 330 hours of O/T (unpaid). Everything went well -
Clients were happy and so were my bosses... So I was looking forward to
January (Bonus Time). The company is privately owned and has over 500
employees in multiple office and did $330+ million a year.
Well, when bonus time rolled around, I was told that since I had "just had a
pay raise" 6 months ago, I was "NOT ELIGIBLE" for a bonus that season... I
was miffed! When all was said and done, I made $15,000 less than the year
before!!!! Grrrrr...
I was making more than my boss (we think - with my O.T.)
about next year> Well, the next year came and went - NADA!!! COL and No
BONUS. I had cut back my hours that year to 215 hours O/T (unpaid) that
year. I was miffed about (edited) first thing, so I backed off even
more. My boss bitched at me for not working more, but I pointed out that I
made LESS now so I was going too be working less (commensurate to my pay).
What could he say, he knew I was (edited) - so he never REALLY pushed
me on the subject, just did it for managements viewing.
Well I can say that my boss knew that if I didn't get a bonus this time
around, that I would walk immediately. I did get 3 weeks pay (big deal) plus
C.o L. January 2nd, I was called up to the V.P.'s office and was told that
I was being laid -off. hahaha I laughed at them - they didn't know what
to do. They thought I was loosing it - "going postal". I had started my own
company several years before and was growing it to become more than just a
part-time job (after my day job). I had 12 projects the day I walked out the
door. I got 3 months severance plus all my unpaid time-off. I cashed in my
401k to buy the equipment I still didn't have for my office an voila! I had
actually planned to take my 4 weeks of vacation and then come back and give
them 30 days notice (I figured I would be nice and I could train my
replacement if they wanted me to).
I love being my own boss... 3 years completed and still enjoying (almost)
everyday. the commute is great! (15 feet instead of 15 miles one way). I set
the hours. No inane meetings to discuss the agenda for the real meeting. No
sitting waiting 2 hours for my 15 min. portion.
I set my hours - which I REALLY love (I am a night owl, as you can see) 6:30
am came too quick. (I had only been asleep for 4-5 hours at that point)
More than once I was slapped on the wrist for being 15 min. late - even on
the days I was work 12-16 hours, Now does that make any sense?
Companies have changed the way that they look at employees as a whole. Most
companies have come to view their employees as a replaceable commodity. What
they often forget, is that it costs approx. 1 1/2 times a person's first
year salary, to get them trained to be able to do the job. And then if they
pay a search company - that's more $. I often see companies spending BIG $
to hire contract people for a partial year ( more often than not, this cost
more than hiring another regular staffer (the "bean counters" feel that it
is cheaper).
I digress a little - sorry.
Stay salary as long as you can... They want a fixed cost - not a floating
number, that can't be controlled easily (that's just their perception).
So I guess my point is - It will never be as rosy as "management" makes the
offer out to be... be very careful and even get the agreement in writing
(if it isn't already spelled out in your office manual). Their expectations
(hours of work per pay period), etc...
If you have to go salary, make sure you "shoot the moon" and be willing to
come down to what you think reasonable. They ALWAYS want to negotiate -
makes them feel like they somehow got a deal too. Put together hard numbers
for "why you are asking for what you want". Show them how you arrived at
that figure (also have back-up materials - time sheets / article related to
salaries in your field + state or region / job description and duties). Just
because you WANT to be "at a certain level by such-and-such age" or that
"that's what you need to cover your bills", these are NOT valid reasons. You
have got to prove your worth if you intend to ask for more.
Typically the big $ jumps come when changing offices (at least in my area).
Most companies only give small increments - unless they are "nudge" to do
so, by competition. Remember there are ALWAYS exceptions to the rules too...
Good Luck!
Dave