Q–I’m working through a temporary agency while I am job searching. Since most companies ask for salary history, I’ve included it on my resume. I try to be discriminating in the ads I choose to answer, but I still get calls for interviews offering $5,000 less than I made at my last position. How should I handle this? I’m too embarrassed to remind these people that my skills warrant more than they are willing to pay.
A–First, take your salary information off your resume. Second, when you are asked if you would like to come in for an interview, don’t ask what the salary is, and third, never be embarrassed to negotiate when you believe your skills are valuable.
Here’s why: Let’s say the salary range for a particular job is $28,000 to $33,000. Companies ask for your salary history so they don’t waste time interviewing apparently unsuitable candidates. But regardless of your salary history, you need that in-person interview to persuade the potential boss that you’d be great in the position and an asset to the company. Once you’ve done that and been offered the job, then you are in a position to negotiate salary. In your cover letter (which should always accompany a resume), to show that you have not overlooked the request, state either a salary range you are willing to consider or that you expect the salary to be commensurate with your experience. By discussing the salary on the phone, you have not given that person any incentive to meet you.
Q–I was a loyal employee for six years and had even won the employee of the year award. Then the company made one of my co-workers (who had only been employed for two years) my supervisor. The trouble began when he started to spread rumors about me. I complained to the company many times and each time I was told that his behavior would not be tolerated. But nothing changed and I became frustrated and quit. What else could I have done?
A–What a shame that gossip made you throw away six years of a great work record. It sounds like management was just telling you what you wanted to hear by agreeing that your supervisor was wrong, but was either incompetent or uninterested in actually helping.
The only other action you could have taken was to speak to this new supervisor, tell him about the rumors you heard and directly ask him if he said those things. Sometimes, the person who is accused of spreading rumors is not the guilty party, and everyone deserves a chance to explain. If he was guilty, talking to him openly might have helped stop it.
Q–How many responses does an ad for a job usually get? It seems the civility has declined in the employment search arena. After a while, you find out it’s a waste of a stamp to send your resume to certain employers, especially if the ad appears time and time again. Does the company really have an opening or does it just like getting mail?
A–No company wants to run job advertisements for the fun of it. If you notice that a company has a lot of job openings, it may be that it has opened a new department or expanded an existing one. And try not to be upset if you don’t receive an acknowledgment to your resume–some companies receive up to 1,200 resumes per ad. If you are not receiving any responses to your resume, you may want to have a career professional review it. A good resume can take up to 10 drafts before it’s presentable.
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Problems on the job? Write to Lindsey Novak, Jobs, Room 400, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago 60611, or via e-mail: AtWorkbyLN@aol.com. No phone calls, please.
