Managing the salary gap among workers

I feel that my salary is lower than two of my colleagues who were hired three months later. What can I do to match their pay? -Wandering Owl.

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I UNDERSTAND your frustration. Discovering a pay gap between you and your colleagues is an incredibly demoralizing experience. It is a common corporate anomaly and a sensitive topic. But you must do better than relying solely on a vague gut feeling.

Operating on intuition alone will ensure you are not taken seriously by your boss or the HR department. You need objective, data-backed evidence to support your claim, which would be difficult as salary data are confidential.

Even if your colleagues were hired three months later, it's not automatic that they should be receiving the same salary. One major reason is the distinction between your job grade levels. That means, your colleagues may be occupying positions that are several levels higher than yours.

Whether the difference is driven by performance ratings, hiring conditions, or market adjustments, your strongest case remains your own value and market competitiveness.

Because you are dealing with a complex topic where information must be handled carefully, the best approach is to detach your claim from your colleagues. In the workplace, anchoring your argument to "what they make" usually triggers an automatic, defensive management response on confidentiality.

LEVERAGE

Primarily, your leverage must come from industry data and your documented consistent, high-value performance and its impact on the organization.