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Now that the Paycheck Fairness Act failed on Capitol Hill, what can women do to try to get the pay they deserve, the same pay as men? In this economy, women may fear that aggressive negotiating may cost them a job either before they even have it or while they have it.
When Denise Di Stephan, a journalist and local editor of aol.com’s www.pointpleasant.patch.com, sent me that question via Facebook, I thought, “Wow, she’s sure covered the waterfront.” She touches women’s fears about negotiating pay in general, negotiating in a difficult economy specifically, and inadequate public policies to back up gender equality in pay negotiations.
Almost simultaneously, I got one of those “I have a friend who has a problem” queries illustrating Denise’s point about how women approach negotiations. But this one has little to do with Washington politics:
“Jessie” is negotiating a promotion while deciding whether to stay with her organization. She’s pretty sure her new supervisor earns a lower salary than she wants. Without knowing what her new supervisor actually makes, what else can she do to negotiate her salary? She gave notice and the company countered. So she's in the midst of this counter-counter and is not sure how far to push it.
Are You Negotiating to a $500,000 Mistake?
You work hard for your money. I don't imagine you want to create the $500,000 lifetime pay gap on average that women suffer compared to men by not negotiating compensation as effectively. Nor do you want to accept the 77 cents women earn to a man's dollar; that can cost you another half mil or more, not counting interest you could have accrued or the lesser retirement funds you'll get as a result of lower lifetime wages.
So what can you do? With the wheels of government halted by Congress’s intransigency on Paycheck Fairness, the best strategy is to divide and conquer Denise’s question, starting with how women can maximize personal negotiating power.
How to Value Yourself and Ditch the Excuses
She Negotiates principal Victoria Pynchon says the descriptor "in this economy" is a smoke screen—a self-limiting thing women do when we assume we enter compensation negotiations with a power deficit. Check out her list of excuses. Have you (like me) hidden behind one of these?
In reality, Pynchon argues, you’re not asking for a raise: “BEFORE the economic crash and the Great Recession, women were making 30% less than their market value; NOW they're probably making 40% less, so you're asking to be paid the fair market value of your services. Until women have achieved gender parity in wages, you're just giving your employer the opportunity to do the right thing.”
I like LOVE that attitude!
She Negotiates founder, Lisa Gates, lays out a helpful step-by-step way to ask for a raise here.
Wish someone had given that to me when I was starting out!
Veronica Arreola director of the Women in Science and Engineering program at the University of Illinois Chicago observed that men often ask her why women don't ask for more. “There may be a tidal change in that GenX men or men raised by feminist moms expect women to ask and if we don't, we lose,” she speculates. “It is still not a perfect game, but if we don't at least try to play, we'll never win.”
And Anne Perschel, PsyD - Leadership & Business Psychologist, specializing in advancing women, uses the game analogy too, advising, “Begin by knowing [that asking] is the way the game is played. Know and be convinced of your worth. Enjoy the game and the winnings.”
My take on “Jessie’s” problem is that she’s in a very strong position. She was already prepared to leave her job. So what her boss is earning is irrelevant. Once Jessie is clear about what salary level would make her happy to stay, she should ask for that. As a manger, I’ve certainly hired people who made as much or more than me because of their expertise and value to the organization. (Note: in the end, that’s what she did. She didn’t get all she asked for, but enough for her to feel she was being treated fairly, and she decided to stay in the organization.)
On to Fair Pay Policies
In negotiating compensation as in most other endeavors, as Denise’s question prompting this column shows, the personal and the political
