Re: Help - Salary info

[Lisa Wright <liwright -at- earthlink -dot- net>]

All together now: "It depends."

I've had the STC survey used as a basis for salary/contract rates for me and junior writers I've hired (so it can carry weight). It's a tool that a lot of writers use to start salary discussions, and bringing it up shouldn't be an issue just because it's an STC survey, though of course data is limited to STC members. In my area (Denver), the information in the survey is fairly consistent with the information on Salary.com, what's listed in job ads, and other information I've come across. I've also had situations where it *was* only the starting point. I also used it in my very first job to make the point that they wanted to grossly underpay me (the company was notorious for that and I wasn't having any). FWIW, I find Salary.com useful as a general tool, but they have so many job classifications that *could* be applicable that it's difficult to find the right one.

But it's definitely a valid point to be able to go into the meeting admitting shortcomings, such as if your area isn't well represented. A great rhetorical tool, to acknowledge another's argument and then still make your point. Past salary is important too, but if you're moving into a new arena then it's harder to work from that point.

MTC
Lisa

-----Original Message-----
From: TechComm Dood <techcommdood -at- gmail -dot- com>
Sent: Aug 3, 2004 11:22 AM
To: TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Cc: TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Subject: Re: Help - Salary info


LOL! But did you remember your asbestos underoos? ;-)

The STC salary survey is useful to see what *some* of the writers out
there are making, but it's not a weight-carrying publication.

Employers usually use data from sources like William M. Mercer,
Incorporated to set ranges based on function, geography, experience,
and education.

So even if the STC survey says there are writers making $85k on
average in one location, that doesn't mean it's the norm, nor does it
mean you can get/demand that. About.com has some excellent info for
job seekers and hiring managers. I suggest reading both sides in
detail for more info that might help you with your negotiations.

Of note, it is possible to enter a compensation discussion with
STC-gathered data, however, use this as a starting point and not the
grounds for supported argument. Any company can challenge those
numbers and easily discredit them. "How was the data gathered? Oh,
response to a survey? How many responded? Only 6 in this area? That
doesn't paint a realistic picture." But, the company may be willing to
entertain the request and perhaps adjust their ranges. I wouldn't bank
on it, but it can't hurt to try, provided you don't place more
emphasis and faith on the survey results than they're worth.

Really, the STC survey is nothing more than a conversation piece.

On Tue, 3 Aug 2004 10:16:58 -0500 , Jones, Donna <djones -at- zebra -dot- com> wrote:
> 
> I may hate myself for it later, but I can't resist replying to this.  ;-)



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

ROBOHELP X5: Featuring Word 2003 support, Content Management, Multi-Author
support, PDF and XML support and much more!
TRY IT TODAY at http://www.macromedia.com/go/techwrl

WEBWORKS FINALDRAFT: New! Document review system for Word and FrameMaker
authors. Automatic browser-based drafts with unlimited reviewers. Full
online discussions -- no Web server needed! http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l 

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.