-1

I know this is an audacious first question, I hope someone(s) will be willing to help. I need to write a letter to my supervisor to this effect: I want to be paid equally. For many years now I have been paid $4-5k less for:

  1. the same job title as another person who I have to work with
  2. one (1) year seniority on this person
  3. a Master's degree, the other person does not have one
  4. significant contributions to workplace without which no one could use computers, notebooks, chromebooks, printers, or email and other software
  5. taking responsibility for and implementing numerous major projects which make possible the work done by staff, along with improving security and such
  6. follow this with a description of accomplishments wrt #4 and #5 above, they say the same things

MY Questions how to handle things:

a) suggestions how to phrase things without being without being unnecessarily critical or demeaning so any advice about phrasing etc. would be helpful, the person with the same title does not know I am doing this

b) I can mention that I am a disabled staff in an agency serving developmentally disabled people, the CEO has dyslexia but I believe this is effectively trumped by his status of being a Hearing executive director whereas I definitely have a hearing disability for which I use a hearing aid.

c) What kind of organization could/should I go to for advice on this topic, how to do this etc.?? (We have an employee assistance but I do not trust this...)

I don't expect any sort of positive response but I feel I should try anyway.

Resigning and getting a new job is not an option like for most people though, I must continue here minimum 4 more years like it or not.

I know there are laws etc. about this topic, I am not asking about this.

If I'm not doing this question/request properly, please advise how I should fix it for you all.

Thank you!! :) :)

wintermutexx
  • 19
  • 1
  • I know I could ask for a raise but the difference in pay is quite significant. I found out by accident -- I saw a spreadsheet or something similar listing salaries, I saw it either earlier this year or last year, I don't recall when AND I did not go looking for it. I know other ways I could find out the actual amount and I know at another related agency they have two staff doing similar work and they are paid equally and I found out from the same spreadsheet. So it's a struggle. – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:11
  • 4 years minimum to retirement age. – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:17
  • A letter to document 15+ years of contributions and explain them. Supervisor is 3 hours away and I hardly ever see him. – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:31
  • Phone call takes people by surprise when they least expect it. I am not a person who can "think quickly on my feet" like everyone else, it is just how I am. I appreciate your point though. I could follow up with a call though, I must think about that. – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:33
  • I'm worth being paid equally for all I have accomplished!! – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:33
  • 5
    Does this answer your question? How should I properly approach my boss if I'm feeling underpaid? – gnat Nov 10 '21 at 22:44
  • That is the job market game. I think you need to make a decision, do you want to go out there and get a new job, which will pay you the fair rate, or take what you're getting here? Corporations have no morality because to them your employ is a business transaction, so you can either suffer, or move. – user121416 Nov 10 '21 at 22:48
  • Is there any way an answer could use the comparison with the co-worker to show discrimination? The reason I ask - at a former job male co-workers once received significant raises, and it appeared to be discrimination based on gender, so we all left. It can be hard to prove, but the suggestion, if done well, might bring about more equity? – thursdaysgeek Nov 11 '21 at 00:42
  • @thursdaysgeek, I think you would need a lot more than the comparison of two specific individuals to prove discrimination. There needs to be more of a pattern as there was in your case. – cdkMoose Nov 11 '21 at 13:47
  • @cdkMoose - two people (in my case) wasn't much of a pattern either. And you are right, which is why I chose to leave rather than try to fight something with inadequate proof. – thursdaysgeek Nov 12 '21 at 17:17

2 Answers2

6

Unfortunately, you have removed the only bargaining chip that you have, the fact that leaving and getting a new job is not possible. I don't know if this is based off of your circumstances, or any other requirements that need to be fulfilled by you, but if your organization knows this, it doesn't really matter what you say. If your organization was capable of paying you more, and they chose not to, then more than likely they will choose to continue your current salary, especially if there's no repercussions.

If you do choose to go on with the request, then your focus needs to be on what you bring to the organization, not on how much other people make, and whether or not you surpass them. If you try to focus on the fact that you surpass a co-worker on facts a, b, and c, then someone can probably come back and point out that you are surpassed on d, e, and f. Remove that argument by not even allowing it to come up.

Good luck.

Brian Place
  • 1,071
  • 1
  • 6
  • 4
  • 1
    I'm too old and disabled to easily be hired by companies who care more about certificates and status. Plus I can't move and so forth. Whether they know this or not is slightly secondary to me stating that I know they are underpaying me and I want to be paid equally. I can most of the time not do anywhere as much as I'm capable of doing but that's also frustrating to not really be doing anything. I don't surpass them on anything, I have done the things that make possible what everyone else does. If I don't maintain/update servers etc. people can't do their work well...It's tough. :( – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:16
  • I don't have a union rep. I'm simply saying: "I know I'm paid less. I want to be paid equally." Their opinion doesn't matter to me. I'm just not going to comment about how I know, in whatever/however way I can think of to not comment on this particular aspect. – wintermutexx Nov 10 '21 at 21:29
  • The organization's opinion may not matter to you, but unfortunately, it's the only one that does matter when it comes to your paycheck. If the money exists to pay you more, and they choose not to, then their opinion is that you do not bring as much value to the organization, for whatever reason. Whatever reasons exist for why you can't leave also don't matter, because if there is no threat of you leaving, then there is no reason for them to pay you more. – Brian Place Nov 11 '21 at 14:51
5

Compensation should be about value. I would not bring up any of the first three items on your list. None of those demonstrate the actual value you bring to the company. Just because two people have the same title doesn't mean they are equally productive and valuable to the company. Having a more advanced degree doesn't mean you are providing more value and certainly having one more year at the company doesn't mean you are more valuable.

You need to start discussing tangible value you have brought to the company and will continue to bring. Items 4 and 5 on your list talk directly to that value. You need to build on those items to present your case.

Most importantly, don't compare yourself to other people in this situation, that opens the door for management to find a different aspect of that other person that may be better than you. This conversation needs to be all about you and your value.

cdkMoose
  • 17,840
  • 5
  • 49
  • 73