Herein lies the basic problem: you are an expense to the company and will be paid as little as possible for the output the company wants and the cost of replaci

Herein lies the basic problem: you are an expense to the company and will be paid as little as possible for the output the company wants and the cost of replacing you. Usually this means of course the going market cost of an engineer at your skill level, seniority, etc. The negotiating power is on the company’s side, save for some wiggle room. You can indeed negotiate that you provide more value than you’re being paid, and may successfully get a raise, but the cost of replacing you is always a factor.