Pay claims: how to get a rise from your boss

Fear of rejection or conflict put most people off asking for a pay rise.

Career Consultancy director Catherine Cunningham says women find it more difficult to ask for a pay rise. Picture: Kelly Barnes.

The thought of asking for a pay rise can incite fear in most workers. We all think we deserve one and should be given one regularly, but most people are too frightened to ask for more dough.

A recent Confidence Index Survey released by global recruitment firm Robert Half, which included the thoughts of 1000 US workers, found 7 per cent would rather have root canal surgery at the dentist than ask for a rise, 13 per cent would rather look for a new job, 32 per cent would rather clean the house and 66 per cent would rather speak in public.

The statistics are damning, and reflect people’s unease with money and their lack of confidence in their own ability.

Robert Half’s NSW, Queensland and Victoria director Andrew Morris says a lack of confidence and the fear of a request turning into conflict or rejection puts many people off.

“They fear their manager or boss will look down on them,” Morris says. “They think they shouldn’t have to ask, they think: ‘I’ve been here for 12 or 18 months, why has my boss not come to me and recognised the great work I’ve done?’ ”

The survey found 89 per cent of people feel they deserve a raise, but only about half are considering asking for one this year.

Money is a sensitive and uncomfortable topic, and people often tie their self-worth and confidence to their salary package. What they fail to realise, Morris says, is that managers do not often automatically think about promotion and pay rises, and many are trying to keep budgets in check and controlling rising expenses, knowing staff are likely to be given a consumer price index boost each July. Staff then tend to stew over their remuneration because they feel they deserve a pay rise, but they do not have the confidence to ask and potentially fracture a good working relationship.

To make the uncomfortable conversation easier, Morris ad­vises workers to give their manager three or four days’ notice when asking for a meeting, effectively tabling an agenda to discuss their career and salary.

The request can allow the worker to plan what they are going to say and gives the manager time to evaluate staff performance.

“It makes the boss think they’re going to have a serious conversation,” he says. “People tend to react badly when they’re pushed into a corner, and 99.9 per cent of meetings go much more smoothly when they have notice.”

While it may not be an easy thing to ask for a pay rise, Morris says people can simplify the process by preparing well for any discussions.

Preparations should include a thorough and honest evaluation of their own performance, industry benchmarks, where they sit compared to similar companies, salary surveys and whether they think their ability to perform tasks justifies their employer paying them more.

“You need to be able to step back, take a breath, ask what the facts are and ensure they are not emotional reasons, and take those to your boss. Companies act on facts, not emotion.”

Rejection can also be tough, with the survey finding 19 per cent of people who have been turned down would look for another job. A third would wait for their next performance review to try again, and 24 per cent would try another tack and ask for better perks.

Career Consultancy director Catherine Cunningham says confidence plays a significant role in asking for a pay rise and can relate directly to a person’s ongoing happiness in a particular role.

“If you feel you’re not appropriately paid, it’s pretty hard to feel positive at work,” Cunningham says. She says women find it more difficult than men do to build up the courage to ask for a pay rise, which can often point to a lack of confidence. A man will apply for a job if he can perform less than 15 per cent of the requirements, while a woman will not apply unless she can do more than 80 per cent of the established tasks.

Cunningham agrees that a person should do their homework before asking for a pay rise because an employee may find out they are being paid less than the industry average and can argue strongly to at least meet a contemporary’s rate. She says it can also be a good idea to sit down in January after the Christmas break and evaluate the past year’s performance, noting achievements.

“Keep your numbers and your statistics,” she says. “You don’t ask for a pay rise because you want it, you ask for a pay rise because you feel you can demonstrate the extra money you’re asking for aligns with the benefits you’re providing to your organisation.”

Cunningham says that when times are tough people also can consider asking for alternatives to money, such as extra annual leave, or working a nine-day fortnight for the same pay.

“It’s all based on you demonstrating your value,” she says.

But the whole process could be simplified and hours of angst avoided if companies undertook regular staff performance reviews, where achievements were benchmarked.

Morris says performance reviews also provide a medium for staff to raise remuneration with a manager in a neutral situation.

Without performance reviews staff can be left wondering how they are tracking, and feel ignored when they are not given a rise.

“They could be wondering why they haven’t been spoken to in six months; that’s important for building up confidence,” Morris says.

Losing staff also can cost a business in recruitment and retraining. If the conversation can be had, it may mean staff end up with better salaries, and the business retains their good workers at little extra expense.