Salary guidance query!

Number 1, don't use the word discrimination. How are you been discriminated against?

Number 2, don't blame the new employee. They got what they asked for. Nothing personal.

Number 3, do up your CV and look. You're chartered now. You never get a bump in pay staying in the same place.

You have proven you will stay and work to targets for the salary they are paying you now. They have no motivation for giving you any more. The ONLY negotiating point you have is a live job offer elsewhere. Go and get one.

That said, I'd be far more worried that your manager only wanted to give you a 2.

An employee on 2 reflects badly on the manager. No manager wants to do that unless there is a real problem, and even then, the manager should have solved the problem, rather than let you get to the end of the year with that. All your manager's manager was doing was covering their ar$e. You need to either find out why the don't think you were meeting expectations (which is what 3 means) and fix it, or leave.

(Yes, it may because your manager is an idiot, rather than an issue with your performance. The only way you can fix that is by getting a different manager.)

You need to ask what is the salary scale for the job position. I'm an engineer, and in my last job the salary system was such that people at the lower end of a particular scale tended to get a higher percentage than those at the top, i.e. you tended to move up the scale in bigger increments early on, and naturally slowed down as you reached the top. Then you could possibly get promoted and start all over again on a new scale.

If we got an annual increment then part of it was just down to C.P.I. (everyone go the same percentage) and then there was a separate 'merit' element which was based on your performance. Again, this should not be a secret, and the system you are subject to should be freely available.

Gaining Chartered Engineering status did not factor in any way in the pay scale. I'm over 40 years qualified, and I never bothered my hole gaining Chartered status because it simply wasn't worth it.

It wasn't unusual for a person who you might have thought was less competent than you start of on a bigger salary than you. That's just down to the interview process, how good they are at blagging, negotiating etc. Once they join the firm the salary/merit/appraisal system should be such that they should be able to balance this apparent anomaly out.

I don't generally agree with you, but I do here if I'm reading correctly.

A few thoughts after reading your post.

Is the manager feeling threatened and petty? Just get a new job op and leave them behind.

Are they managing you out? As above try to get a new job and don't bother even glancing over your shoulder.

It's about you. Regardless of the reasons of the poor review, get out of dodge now!

The issue is they can't recruit today at the same salary as they did in the past.

The only way to know what your worth is to apply for better jobs elsewhere. If you get i one you are being underpaid and you should move.

Just a subtle general point when it comes to salaries - an employee with all the qualifications and experience in the world does not imply that they are a good, invaluable worker etc.

If your manager is 64 n retiring in a few years n u take over his gig I would hold off for a year.

You sound as though you are learning plenty and enjoy the job. Tell them you need a bump to pay the bills.

Manager seems old school. I'd apply for jobs anyway just to see if you are underpaid, if you are underpaid 10k is it worth the jump, if 30k jump!

if you are young and learning lots that’s not to be sniffed.

You might think the above is the plan…..but things change fast. If the above does transpire there might not be the massive pay rise you expect either with the promotion.

Counteroffers can be very demeaning and destroy trust and respect. If you accept one you will forever harbour a feeling that they only valued you when you put a gun to their heads. You’ve asked for an increase and didn’t get it. By all means ask again; you have three years experience which they either value or they don’t, and your boss is leaving soon and they either see you as a replacement or they don’t. You your options are:

1. Ask again, making the case that you are well qualified, 3 years company experience, strong track record, hard working, ambitious, interested in furthering your career
2. Sit it out and see what happens when your boss leaves
3. Get your CV out there and go get a new job. Sometimes you have to move to advance. That’s just how it is.

I was a team lead and the worst paid person in the team, mostly because I hired on 4 people and gave them decent salaries while the company was underpaying me. Unsurprisingly I ended up leaving

Haha, it's two jobs ago so very much water under the bridge. The company in question is notorious for not giving pay rises, I wanted to ensure the people we hired wanted to stay a while and wouldn't jump ship after a year, hence why I was ensuring they got decent salaries. While it was definitely frustrating, I didn't feel that the others in my team should be underpaid just to put me on top.

Speaking of counter offers, the boss in that job was honest enough to admit he couldn't match the next role. Personally I don't think it's worth entertaining counter offers since there's often other factors at play and when you're set to go it's very hard to turn around.

Then again I recently got made redundant and had to take a contract job, so perhaps I'm not the best example to follow 🫠