The best way to ask for a pay rise

Anew study has revealed workers in Scotland feel they are some of the most undervalued in the nation, believing they deserve a 37.5% pay increase.

Professional CV writing specialists Purple CV (www.purplecv.co.uk) carried out a survey of 2,500 British workers and found, on average, Brits believe they deserve a not-insignificant 36.8% pay increase (£8,500.43 on top of their current average salary).

North Easterners believe that they are the most undervalued, and should be paid 45.4% more per year (£9,700.16).

Those who are happiest with their current remuneration are the Welsh – they would be happy with just £6,298.50 (30%) extra per year.

Scots, however, believe that they should be paid 37.5% more per year (£8,620.88).

Purple CV also surveyed workers by industry.

While lawyers can sometimes have a reputation as being shark-like, they’re actually working in the industry which feels it deserves the lowest pay rise, at only a 30% increase.

While they may not all be pro-bono, it looks like they might not be that unreasonable, after all, when it comes to pushing up their hourly rates!

Surprisingly, the industry one might think would ask for the least actually asked for more than the lawyers: charity workers believe they deserve an increase of 32.22%!

And despite the high salaries of bankers, they’re still not happy, and feel underpaid; deserving 41.43% on top of what they currently earn.

However, it is workers in the tech industry who feel that they deserve the highest rise.

Despite many tech companies being floated on the stock exchange for gazillions of pounds, they still feel they deserve more than 50% more money: 57.69%, in fact.

Purple CV also found the nation’s workers feel they deserve an extra 8.3 days of paid annual leave.

The most burned-out region is Greater London – Londoners would love an extra 9.8 days, according to the survey. The Welsh had a different outlook, only wishing for 5.8 more days per year.

Finally respondents were asked whether, given the choice, they would choose more pay or extra holiday days.

And instead of choosing more time off, 63.2% of us would prefer to take a higher salary. Almost every region across the UK was in agreement, except for East Midlanders where 56% would prefer extra holiday time.

So how easy is it to actually negotiate with your employer over salary and holiday days? Purple CV has put together some key tips:

1. Pick the right time to approach your employer. Chances are, they are more likely to say no if you don’t warn them first. Set up a meeting and let them know what you would like to discuss in advance, it will give both you and them time to prepare.

2. Know your industry and find out your value before asking for a pay rise. Spend some time looking into how much others who are in similar roles are earning.

3. Employers are going to ask why you deserve the pay rise, so make sure you come to the meeting prepared with examples of where you have exceeded company expectations.

4. Don’t be too tempted to just accept their first offer; it would be appropriate to say you will get back to them.

5. You may not always get the answer that you want but, remember, ‘no’ doesn’t always mean that there isn’t potential for it to be brought up again at a later date.

“It may seem an intimidating process to ask for a pay rise – even if we really want one,” says Andrew Arkley, director of Purple CV.

“It’s all about approaching the situation with credible and objective reasons behind your request, maximising the chance for your employer to see your value as an employee. If the answer is no, then don’t let it get you down – you have ‘planted’ the seed for future opportunities and discussions.”

Scots workers believe that they should be paid 37.5% more each year, according to a study by Purple CV.