Kevin Bemel ·
Has Your Salary Kept Pace?
About the source date and illustrations
The date is transcribed from Posts – Sunday 2023. The original publication date has not been independently verified. Historical figures, links, and event announcements are preserved as written.
Some illustrations from the source document are not reproduced here.
The cover photograph is illustrative. Photo: Tara Winstead on Pexels · Pexels License.
3 minutes to read.
Has your salary kept up with the market? With high inflation for the last two years and a tight labor market, wages for many jobs have changed significantly. Before addressing how to talk with your employer, let’s look at some numbers.
Benchmarking Salaries
While median wages haven’t kept pace with inflation, that doesn’t mean your salary is not aligned with the market. Get the facts first. Try the salary estimator at https://www.salary.com/. It breaks down salary and benefits for specific jobs by location.
For example, if you are a journeyman plumber in Los Angeles, CA, the salary profile looks like this:
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Salaries range from a little over $50,000 to just about $90,000 a year, with a median of $70,620.
Adding bonuses raises these numbers a few hundred dollars a year.
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Average benefits break down as follows:
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Their total value is $30,849 a year, making total annual compensation (salary + bonus + benefits) of $101,469.
How do you know where in the range you should fall? Consider how much training you have, including in specialty areas, your years of experience including training or supervising others, and your performance in your current and even previous jobs.
While You’re on the Subject
Compare this with a journeyman plumber in Omaha, NE.
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Total compensation is $86,774. So, as a journeyman plumber in Los Angeles, you’ll make on average 17% more than in Omaha. Where would you be better off?
According to numbeo.com (https://www.numbeo.com/), you would need around $7,102.50 in Los Angeles to maintain the same standard of living that you can have with $5,300.00 in Omaha, a difference of 34%. In other words, the compensation premium you get being a journeyman plumber in Los Angeles is half of what you would need to live a comparable life in Omaha.
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According to realtor.com (https://www.realtor.com), the median home sold price in Los Angeles is $925,600 versus $401,000 in Omaha, or 231% higher.
Now that you know how to benchmark your salary, what do you do next?
Negotiating
Indeed.com (https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/pay-salary/how-to-negotiate-raise) has an excellent 7-step process for preparing and negotiating for a raise:
Research salary data for your position.
Consider the company's financial performance.
Reflect on your achievements.
Decide on your target range for the raise.
Prepare your presentation.
Practice negotiating with friends or family.
Schedule your meeting.
Diligently follow each step and you will have the best shot at getting a raise.
Dissatisfied?
If, despite careful preparation, you’re not able to improve your current situation, it may be time to consider changing employers or finding a new career path. That’s not to say you should quit. Rather, do your research and create a plan before taking any action.
Perhaps you can get going on a parttime jig that over time can become your fulltime employment.
Where are you on this journey? Have you set your financial goals?
How can I help you? Call, text, or email me.
Kevin
P.S. Don’t miss this week’s episodes of The WAY to WOW Shows:
Monday, June 5, 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET – Trusts & Estate Weekly, https://www.eventbrite.com/e/633479202347
Tuesday, June 6, 11:00 a.m. PT / 2:00 p.m. ET – Business Lessons from the Military,
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/633485561367
Wednesday, June 7, 12:30 p.m. PT / 3:30 p.m. ET – People Making Money with guest Brett Henderson,