Asking for a raise - advice please!

Fly_Baby

Hello. My OH is a university lecturer, he has been on a fixed contract and now is offered a permanent position.

The problem is, he is on a lowish salary and it is set to stay the same on the permanent contract. He has been applying for similar jobs and on average, lectureship in his area is paid higher by 5-15%. In fact, he has been offered a permanent position elswhere - and their offer is 10% higher than what he is on now.

Just for information - we live in an expensive part of UK so I cannot say that his salary is indicative of the average earnings in this area.

Now, my OH thinks it would be fair to ask for a raise now that his contract is switched to permanent. His teaching load has been higher than average, he takes work home to do at weekends. And his Uni doesn't have a salary indexing scheme (i.e. it is not increased with inflation at all and just stays the same unless the person is promoted). So this could be a perfect time to negotiate a better pay - if not his only chance.

What kind of factors could he mention to justify his request for a pay rise?

LindsayO

I didn't know there were uni's without index-linking. I work at a uni, and thought they were all on the sinlge pay spine, with increments every year, plus index linking.

I would definitely mention the other offer being 10% higher. I would also seriously consider taking the other offer, and then tell my current employers what I wanted salary-wise and then if they did not offer it, accept the other offer

Fly_Baby

LindsayO wrote: »

I didn't know there were uni's without index-linking. I work at a uni, and thought they were all on the sinlge pay spine, with increments every year, plus index linking.

I would definitely mention the other offer being 10% higher. I would also seriously consider taking the other offer, and then tell my current employers what I wanted salary-wise and then if they did not offer it, accept the other offer

Yes, I was surprised too! On my OH's previous job, his salary was increasing so much simply due to the index-linking that he didn't even need a promotion.

The other offer sounds perfect but it is a much longer commute - close to 1.5 hr by car one-way.

Fly_Baby

Is there really a room for salary negotiation with universities?

David_Brent

The fact he was offered a job else where paying an extra 10% higher than he is on now, is irrelevant in terms of him asking for a pay rise (different institution/different area/different job)!

He really needs to note down what justifies the pay rise and how his responsibilites have changed since starting working there, how long long has he worked there? Is there anyone at the same level as him being paid more than he is?

Fly_Baby

David_Brent wrote: »

The fact he was offered a job else where paying an extra 10% higher than he is on now, is irrelevant in terms of him asking for a pay rise (different institution/different area/different job)!

He really needs to note down what justifies the pay rise and how his responsibilites have changed since starting working there, how long long has he worked there? Is there anyone at the same level as him being paid more than he is?

The other position is the same job and a cheaper area of the UK at that.

He has been working for a year. There is no way of knowing what other staff members are paid but his salary is objectively low.

Would referring to average pay for similar positions in other instutions a valid point in his raise request?

Fly_Baby

Is the fact that he is accepted as a permanent member of staff rather than a fixed-term contractor makes a difference? I.e. are fixed-term posts paid lower therefore a permanent post should pay more?

Premier_2

Fly_Baby wrote: »

Is there really a room for salary negotiation with universities?

In the words of Germaine Greer "Everything is negotiable" ... especially if the average salary elsewhere is 5-15% higher and your OH has already been offered a position elsewhere doing the same thing for 10% more.

(Of course, if you don't plan on moving, you need to take into account the 3 hours per day unpaid commuting involved ... which may be why the other place offered more in an attempt to attract him)

Fly_Baby

An update. MY OH had a chat with his line manager and unfortunately, all the reasons he gave for a raise didn't work. He was told that that's the offer they are making, take it or leave it.

Still, an interesting detail came up when contacting the HR. My OH was on a Senior Lecturer contract and his permanent position is Senior Lecturer too. But apparently, talking of the salary grades of his Uni, he is on the Lecturer grade. The HR officer said that it is up to the line manager to "promote" him to the upper grade.

He is on top of the Lecturer grade and so will not be getting any increments until he is moved to the next grade. So basically stuck on one salary for indefinite time.

But is it really right (legally) to pay him a Lecturer grade when he is employed as a Senior Lecturer? Can anything be disputed here?

Premier_2

Fly_Baby wrote: »

An update. MY OH had a chat with his line manager and unfortunately, all the reasons he gave for a raise didn't work. He was told that that's the offer they are making, take it or leave it.

Still, an interesting detail came up when contacting the HR. My OH was on a Senior Lecturer contract and his permanent position is Senior Lecturer too. But apparently, talking of the salary grades of his Uni, he is on the Lecturer grade. The HR officer said that it is up to the line manager to "promote" him to the upper grade.

He is on top of the Lecturer grade and so will not be getting any increments until he is moved to the next grade. So basically stuck on one salary for indefinite time.

But is it really right (legally) to pay him a Lecturer grade when he is employed as a Senior Lecturer? Can anything be disputed here?

Maybe he should get the HR to explain why they are paying him on a different rate to that which his contract states?

Normally pay rates are banded and that is indeed normally dictated by the position held/employed as (which normally is decided on their roles & responsibilities)

However, he might not get any more money even if they reband him. The bands often overlap so there will probably be some Senior Lecturers being paid less than the higher paid Lecturers

(That assumes also that a Senior Lecturer is a higher paid band to a Lecturer - I know of a company where a Senior Engineer is a lower banded job than an Engineer)

But at least in the higher banded position, there would be an opportunity for an increase; at present there is none (other than general pay reviews)

Fly_Baby

Thanks Premier, he has emailed the HR to see why his grade does not match his post.

The grades at his Uni don't overlap.

Is there a point asking their trade union for advice re. being on a lower grade than his post suggests? OH isn't sure he is even a member...