Salary/year

gigalo - $128K/year

Never discuss salary... with anyone.

Bacterial hit man. Synthetic chemist. Protein designer. Molecular Biologist. Lab manager. Graduate student.

Not enough on a per hour basis.

Did you see the article a few days ago about that Swiss gigolo who swindled a bunch of high-profile Bavarian fraus? If he weren't a dunce, he would have made several million euros. Instead, he got greedy and got caught. No joke!

He was just sentenced to six years yesterday.

Tell me you don't want to jump his bones; I dare you.

I'm going to guess they are paying too much.

There's no accounting for taste I guess. But I look good in a Tux and have a 12" tongue.

I am currently unemployed....damn economy.

For me it's not about salary. I earn enough to pay my bills and have modest retirement savings.

But I only work 25 hours per week. That's what it's all about. This is a fucked up world when people are working 80 hour weeks, no matter how much they earn. How much is enough?

Depends - I'm lucky in that I love what I do (most days)... if I didn't, there's no *WAY* I'd work this hard or this much. I'm a lazy bastard by nature.

Eh ... the world has always been a collection of imperfect solutions ... it probably always will be. If people want to work 80 hours a week, let them [err, us]. Some of us like work, some of us need to do it to support one thing or another, and some of us just don't have anything better to do! If someone told me I could only work 40 hours a week, I don't know what I'd do with myself.

hey
if i overspent on my mortgage and can't pay it---govt says you'll pay my mortgage
govt will even have you pay my 2nd and 3rd loan that i took for my new boat and car
if i can't pay my carpayment--govt says you'll pay it
i just need govt to grow the "list" won't take long
i will become "self-unemployed" my new job will be "waste-management" till you pay my bills, hey and that won't be but 10 hours a week, 5 of those will be whining to politicians .
i hear they are hiring at the local "flea market" for cash.
life is good.
thank you all


ok seriously, i'm blessed to have a job, one in which the more i work, the more i make (mostly) since i am in a service industry, its hard to see the many out of work, which will push my income down. as per dave ramsey, i have been raised to manage my money and debt by my parents and grandparents, so i have been for the last 10 years saving and paying down debt, working with my wife and family not to waste, to control those "impulse" purchases and have some emergency funds. My dad once told me that if i can't manage $1 i won't be able to manage a thousand. i am blessed that i have that type of background,a wonderful thifty wife and still able to have a job through many years of sacrifice very hard work and training, and so my family is doing well on what i make, and even if my income comes down (which i expect over the next 6 months) we'll be ok. my window for retirement is long and for my kids education / college won't start for 7-8 years while this economic mess and wallstreet meltdown has time to recover. i pray for those that are having lost their job, or facing retirement or their kids are soon to start school. but as per dave ramsey it's never to late to start preparing for the now and future.
http://www.daveramsey.com/

Would it be fair to have everyone's salaries posted?
Just the numbers. No names attached.

How would you react if you found out that people who did the same job as you were making more money?

How would you react if you found out that people doing the same job as you and making more money had only been there for 2-3 years while you've been at your job for more than 6-7?

Would it be fair to have people's salaries posted?

They (whoever they are) say that discussing salary is bad. But is it? It seems like it's only to the benefit of the employer to hide people's salaries.

Does pay for performance really exist?

There's transparency in the gov't. If you know someone's grade you have a good idea of their salary. Typically the band is narrow and in lockstep with grade (and step). Doesn't seem to hurt anything.

Mostly it's a combination of not wanting friction in the workplace. Most companies understand that work friends will tell each other what they make.

Pay for performance does exist. You just have to understand that "performance" covers a lot of ground...including ability to suck up and not being a doormat. If you are nice at a normal human level (not brown noser and not asshat) and have the fortitude to walk if you aren't being properly compensated then mostly your salary will be about right over time.

If you're a hard worker but an asshat or just abnormally shy, yeah, your salary may not reflect your performance because you're below average in social skills.

If I found out someone was making more than me, I'd figure out if it was worth the effort to try to match their level of performance. If that included more sucking up or kind of work I disliked than I wanted I wouldn't bother. If it bothered me that much I'd shop my resume around.

If they had only been there 2-3 years and I had been there 6-7 years I'd understand that it is simply the way things work. Any time you stay at a company a long time you start to fall behind. Remember that every job jump should be a 10-15% bump in salary. Someone with 2 job hops in that 7 year period (one at 3 years and one to your company) saw a 30% salary bump you didn't see.

Early in your career that's a huge differential. Later on you start to get too close to your profession's cap.

On the plus side, they're more likely to get laid off than you. If it bothers you, wait until the recovery and job hop. Now is not an optimal time.

I work at a pubic institution so ... all the salaries are public. With a simple search I know what everyone has made for years. I've talked about this with my peers.

The reactions are ...

Wow that person is way under paid: Person X has so many years of experience that they are now vital to the running of the place. But their pay grade is only $Z.

I had no idea that someone that does that makes that much: Maybe job category Y pays more than I thought it should but who am i to say?

Way over paid: People that are unconnected and unaccountable get way too much money. They could be fired tomorrow and it would be a net benefit to the institution. But because they are faculty or something they make $P and that's that.

If it was handing out the money in term on contribution and essential service to the global effort it would be different than what I see. Some people are ready to make it happen and some aren't. The salaries don't always reflect that.