Employment Contract Negotiations

[black2002ls]

Thanks, his demeanor at the end of the conversation was more of a, it has been nice talking with you, and don't expect to hear back from me. We shall see

[BMCSean]

Good luck Russell.

[black2002ls]

I gave my counter offer just a bit ago. I told them I was at $38000 base salary. I threw out fuel and maintenance costs, as well as for it to make sense for me with increased time away from home.

[Chas_svo]

Another thing to consider is wear and tear on your vehicle. Long ago, maybe '89 or so, it was more than $8/hr.

Anybody have a "real" number for today?

[bcoop]

Gas reimbursement doesn't add up like you think, even less so when youre not in a econobox. It pays for fuel and an oil change basically, you barely come out ahead if at all.

Exactly. We get a flat fee monthly for use of our vehicles. I buy one tank a month, they buy the rest. I come out ahead, but its because of the allowance. Reimbursement is a shitty deal, and covers no maintenance, tires, etc.

[bcoop]

Tough deal. I say counter @ $38,000, and double the gas. You can write off the mileage and wear on your car at tax time, but that only reduces your tax liability.


But I would take it if I were you. It gets you out of retail. Here's the deal, retail management experience doesn't mean squat in the grand scheme of things. Not until you get up in to regional management. And retail positions aren't exactly quality to have on he resume. They tend to attract a certain type of employee, IMO, and that's not a good thing to associate yourself with. JMO, of course.

That fuel reimbursement deal sucks ass though. Makes me appreciate my deal that much more.

[lowthreeohz]

Gas reimbursement doesn't add up like you think, even less so when youre not in a econobox. It pays for fuel and an oil change basically, you barely come out ahead if at all.

[8mpg]

Other than the gas money, will they reimburse mileage? Current reimbursement is $.0565/mile which really adds up.

[SVT Lurch]

Personally, I would take it and start getting real world experience related to your degree. Consider it a stepping stone.

Even though it's not related to your degree, as long as you don't end up making less money overall, I agree that this is your foot in the door to get the experience all the other jobs are telling you that you need.

[black2002ls]

There are promotion opportunities with this company, though they are limited as it is a smaller company. As for related to my degree, it is in no way related, though currently, I think the only way my degree is going to do me any good is to go teach mach or physics (my degree field).

[BlackGT]

Unfortunately, this job is in no way related to my degree. My contact for the position has hopes of me moving to construction manager within 12-18 months, which would be a pay increase. However, at this point, I would consider it a step backwards in responsibility. I am currently in a management role, the position I would be taking, is only a management role by name (warranty manager).

But does it have more potential to open more doors for you with that same company or another company, and possibly allow you to put your degree to use, once you gain some experience? More so than where you are now? Sounds like it does and that is what you should base your decision on. But don't settle for their first offer. You need to counter with what I posted above and what Roscoe posted.

[black2002ls]

Unfortunately, this job is in no way related to my degree. My contact for the position has hopes of me moving to construction manager within 12-18 months, which would be a pay increase. However, at this point, I would consider it a step backwards in responsibility. I am currently in a management role, the position I would be taking, is only a management role by name (warranty manager).

[Roscoe]

Personally, I would take it and start getting real world experience related to your degree. Consider it a stepping stone.

This, but you need to counter with a higher number, expecting to settle at a "happy medium". I've never heard of anyone rescinding an offer due to a counter.

Give them something like "Thank you for the offer, and after review, I would like to respectfully counter your offer of employment at base salary of $37,500 per year with a $500/qtr gas allowance. Based upon the requirements of the position, I am very happy to accept an offer of my counter, as the cost of fuel, vehicle maintenance, etc, blah blah blah".

Don't make it about your commute from Greenville, they won't care.

[BlackGT]

I don't really know that I am ok with that as a base. Granted, I make less than 10/hr now. I believe I am worth more than 32/yr.

Here is the flip side of the coin, this is the first real offer I have had since graduation. This position is in no way related to my degree so it doesn't help me in this instance.

I have another round of applications in for technical positions, from entry level ME to basic drafting.

Even though you believe you are worth more than the 32K they are offering, doesn't mean they do. As you said, you have no experience in that field, so you are getting, fresh off the street offers.

You have to look at in terms of, how can/will this job help you in the future. Are there experiences to be had/learned that you can apply to something in the future? Does it give you more responsibility than current job/past jobs?
What is the potential to "move up" with this company or others like it?

With no experience, you are not going to get top-tier offers for salary.

I would counter with:
Base - $38K. They will usually come up and meet you in the middle probably somewhere around the $34-35K range
Gas/qtr - $500. I don't know that I would yield much on this one. $250/qtr isn't shit. $500 isn't great, but that's at least 6-8 tanks of fuel...

[UserX]

Personally, I would take it and start getting real world experience related to your degree. Consider it a stepping stone.