[ninechances]

I'm working for a fairly small company (~30 emp). Myself and another are the only developers in our department (I'm the lead developer). I'm currently on salary and don't have benefits with the company but outside. My co-worker has been trying to negotiate his salary for the last few months which is pretty ridiculous to me - especially since he was told it would have been settled months ago. The company has basically told him it is still out of the cards for the time being and will be for the next couple of months. He is waiting on a final decision that will come this week to whether or not they will be able to start throwing numbers at him. If they don't, he WILL be looking for another job and I do not blame him.

So, I'm faced with a professional decision to make upon bad news (he leaves). I will be the only developer doing all front-end and back-end work (web design, database, programming, security, project management, etc...). I'm definitely going to be asking for the company to compensate me for the slack I'm picking up by demanding to have his current salary compounded with mine with benefits. Is this a bad move? The company would be faced with the same dilemma if they started another position search and would also delay current project timelines significantly. Any suggestions are welcomed.

Additional info: He's making $10/hr - 40hrs a week.

This post has been edited by ninechances: 23 September 2012 - 06:34 PM

[Oler1s]

Quote

I'm definitely going to be asking for the company to compensate me for the slack I'm picking up by demanding to have his current salary compounded with mine with benefits. Is this a bad move?

Let me put it this way. If the company came to you, and said, you will do the same amount of work, but you have to take a paycut. How would you feel?

You need to feel fairly compensated for the what is being requested of you and your actual performance. You also need to find what is being requested of you actually reasonable, regardless of compensation. If not, find another job.

Quote

The company would be faced with the same dilemma if they started another position search and would also delay current project timelines significantly.

Don't make decisions based on how you feel for the company.

The company either needs to allocate resources to maintain a higher pace of development (i.e. hire more people, offer better pay). Or accept a timeline based on resources available. Or drop features and functionality in the project.

Offer these three options. If they refuse all, they are being unreasonable.

But don't try to be considerate of the company. It just leads to you losing out.

This post has been edited by Oler1s: 23 September 2012 - 08:03 PM

[ninechances]

Oler1s, on 23 September 2012 - 10:02 PM, said:

Quote

I'm definitely going to be asking for the company to compensate me for the slack I'm picking up by demanding to have his current salary compounded with mine with benefits. Is this a bad move?

Let me put it this way. If the company came to you, and said, you will do the same amount of work, but you have to take a paycut. How would you feel?

You need to feel fairly compensated for the what is being requested of you and your actual performance. You also need to find what is being requested of you actually reasonable, regardless of compensation. If not, find another job.

Quote

The company would be faced with the same dilemma if they started another position search and would also delay current project timelines significantly.

Don't make decisions based on how you feel for the company.

The company either needs to allocate resources to maintain a higher pace of development (i.e. hire more people, offer better pay). Or accept a timeline based on resources available. Or drop features and functionality in the project.

Offer these three options. If they refuse all, they are being unreasonable.

But don't try to be considerate of the company. It just leads to you losing out.

Very well put and great point of view - especially how you worded the 3 different options. I really hope it doesn't come down this situation for the sole fact that I enjoy working with him very much. We're great friends and he has helped solve problems on various projects that I couldn't have done without him. Thanks for the input.

[wordswords]

Just to say, $10 / hour is a TERRIBLE wage for a programmer, in most geographical areas. I know that's not your wage, but if you have experience, I would be very tempted to look elsewhere where they pay you closer to market rates.

[jon.kiparsky]

wordswords, on 28 September 2012 - 09:38 AM, said:

Just to say, $10 / hour is a TERRIBLE wage for a programmer, in most geographical areas. I know that's not your wage, but if you have experience, I would be very tempted to look elsewhere where they pay you closer to market rates.

$10 an hour? For a programmer? Great god in boots! Our interns make $15/hour...

[no2pencil]

Everything that Oler1s said.

With high risk comes high reward. Working for a small company puts you in a great position if they expand.

If.

& only you can say whether or not it's worth it to you. Sounds to me like you already made up your mind.

& also I agree $10 an hour is a shit wadge for anyone in the technical field. Considering customer service (even bad customer service) makes $12 an hour.

[lordofduct]

Totally agree with everything said.

I'm going to add my own flavor of response as well (note my flavor is of the aggressive kind).



To your buddy who makes 10$ an hour. QUIT. That's bullshit... Don't wait for them to "get back" about discussing the numbers. They aren't stalling the raise, they're stalling talking about a raise! Let it be known he's leaving, and maybe then they'll talk.

And the fact they don't see that 10/hour is horribly under-appreciating their assets. They're screwing up bad. If they can't afford to pay him more... then they have larger financial problems in their company if they can't pay their devs what a dev should be paid.



As for you. You'll most likely end up taking on any jobs he does if he leaves. That's going to screw you. And if they're being such a pain in the ass to give the guy a raise from 10 freaking dollars (this is the U.S. right? Just wanna make sure I'm considering the right cost of living), what makes you think they'll give you any raise, let alone a 10 an/hour raise with benefits?

No, it's time to use your leverage. You're lead developer, you're your buddies superior. Time to grab the reigns and do what a lead should do in this type of situation. Stick up for your guys!

Make a case for why he NEEDS a raise, and why dev needs some consideration. (and do it before your boy quits, cause if he's smart, he'd quit tomorrow)



I don't mean to offend when I say this. It just doesn't sound like you are a "i'm the boss" kind of person. If this is true, start, cause otherwise you have no one representing you in your office.

To give you an example, in my office the lead dev isn't exactly the best programmer I've met. I have more skill in that department. BUT he's a good boss, and he fights for his team hard with in our small office of 30 or so employees. I was in a similar situation getting very low pay (though not THAT low) and he recognized I was upset and considering leaving. He went and put my case to the big boss and got me a 20k raise... I was only going to ask for a 10-12k raise and he came back to me with 20.

He basically let the boss know that I was an important and powerful asset to the company. And that it hurt more to lose me then to pay me.

So go fight for your man! What do you have to lose? I say that because really you're already set to lose more if you don't fight.

This post has been edited by lordofduct: 28 September 2012 - 10:15 AM

[DarenR]

First off, whether you like the company or not is not the issue here. You need to be concerned with your well being above the company's well being. If they think they can squeeze more work out of you for less they will and they will do it without a second thought. You on the other hand will gain more work and lose more sleep and not be compinsated. Think about that.

[Viske]

As someone who makes ~$11/hr (converted from £) as a developer, where I manage my own projects as a sole developer (others are doing different projects that I'm not directly involved with currently), doing front-end and back-end work, I'm glad to know that I should be getting much more.

As for your situation, I agree with lordofduct. Tell them that he's helped solve problems that you couldn't have on your own, that he's a valuable team member, and losing him would cost them more than increasing his wages. If they don't make an effort to talk about it, at the minimum, he should be leaving ASAP as they're likely just stalling, as has already been said.

[jon.kiparsky]

Viske, on 01 October 2012 - 11:35 AM, said:

As someone who makes ~$11/hr (converted from £) as a developer, where I manage my own projects as a sole developer (others are doing different projects that I'm not directly involved with currently), doing front-end and back-end work, I'm glad to know that I should be getting much more.

Yeah, you're getting raped too.

[fromTheSprawl]

Ha. Tell that to majority of the IT workers in my country. Most of us get payed of your per hour in a day. Oh well.

[lordofduct]

It's also called relative to cost of living. It's something we brought up previously.

[fromTheSprawl]

Yeah, I guess you're right.

[lordofduct]

At the same time though the economic disparagement between a country like ours and a country where 10 dollars a day is normal. That's also a problem, but it's a whole different kind of problem.

A business has the power to adjust itself and pay an adequate paycheck with in the economic climate relative to itself. It can fail at doing so, and fail at a company, but at least it has the power.

Where as the power to adjust itself to break out of it's relative economic climate is not something an individual company would have. That's a systemic handicap, and it takes time to grow and get better. No one individual is the causal factor in it, but instead only plays a minor role.

[Skydiver]

So let's say a company makes money hand over fist, and it is in a position to not just adequately compensate its employees, but lavishly compensate them. Does the company have any moral obligation to prevent inflation? For example, a company pays its employees a 5 times as much as anybody else within a 300 km radius, and most everybody within that distance works for that company, or provides goods and services for the people who work for that company. The goods and service providers notice that they can raise their prices and their clients will tolerate it. What about the minority that doesn't get paid lavishly but still have to get their goods and services from the same providers?