5 ms·

I’ve stayed at my current job 24 years. I was hired at a Senior level above my experience with better pay than I probably deserved as I was 18 month out of uni.

I’ve stayed at my current job 24 years. I was hired at a Senior level above my experience with better pay than I probably deserved as I was 18 month out of uni. Still, my total increase is 278%. I had a 7 year span in the middle with almost no increase - about 7%. I wonder if those seven years coincide and were during an economic downturn?

seattle_spring 5y ago
That's less than 5% compounded annually. I'm not sure if your underlying message was agreeing with OP or not, but 278% over 24 years is atrocious compared to how insane the market has been this last decade. Hell, inflation alone has been 73% between 1998 and now.
- BizarroLand 5y ago
  My pay from 2012-now has gone from $15/hr to $60/hr. ~400% increase or 40%/year staying at jobs for roughly 3 years. The biggest jump came in 2017-2018 when I moved to Washington, from $25/hr to $35/hr to $48/hr in 18 months and it increased again in 2020 when I moved to my current job. Idk if I am extremely lucky or if I don't recognize the value my skills as well as my employers do. All I know if I am not averse to negotiating a little and that I keep my resume up to date and I test the waters from time to time just to see what's out there.
- peapicker 5y ago
  Edited to indicate I was hired at a salary above my experience. Took me 5 years to grow into being Senior when I was really a Junior. But was still payed as a Senior the whole time. I do make well above market for my years in my geographic region.
- chii 5y ago
  you cannot compare the market gains with job raises - the market gains have a risk element that job raises do not. a 5% risk free return is not bad. I would actually say that if your job did not change over those decades, it might not make sense to get paid more than just matching inflation!
  - seattle_spring 5y ago
    By "the market" I meant "the market for software engineering jobs."
apsurd 5y ago
You are back justifying a linear reality of "only upward". I've never really understood this line of thinking. Of course in retrospect now that all information is known, we can linearly quantify a per year rate of return as "non ideal". But what is the point of that I wonder. This company took a chance on OP and they feel gratitude. This is enough imo.

seattle_spring 5y ago

That's less than 5% compounded annually. I'm not sure if your underlying message was agreeing with OP or not, but 278% over 24 years is atrocious compared to how insane the market has been this last decade. Hell, inflation alone has been 73% between 1998 and now.

BizarroLand 5y ago
My pay from 2012-now has gone from $15/hr to $60/hr. ~400% increase or 40%/year staying at jobs for roughly 3 years. The biggest jump came in 2017-2018 when I moved to Washington, from $25/hr to $35/hr to $48/hr in 18 months and it increased again in 2020 when I moved to my current job. Idk if I am extremely lucky or if I don't recognize the value my skills as well as my employers do. All I know if I am not averse to negotiating a little and that I keep my resume up to date and I test the waters from time to time just to see what's out there.
peapicker 5y ago
Edited to indicate I was hired at a salary above my experience. Took me 5 years to grow into being Senior when I was really a Junior. But was still payed as a Senior the whole time. I do make well above market for my years in my geographic region.
chii 5y ago
you cannot compare the market gains with job raises - the market gains have a risk element that job raises do not. a 5% risk free return is not bad. I would actually say that if your job did not change over those decades, it might not make sense to get paid more than just matching inflation!
- seattle_spring 5y ago
  By "the market" I meant "the market for software engineering jobs."

apsurd 5y ago

You are back justifying a linear reality of "only upward". I've never really understood this line of thinking. Of course in retrospect now that all information is known, we can linearly quantify a per year rate of return as "non ideal". But what is the point of that I wonder. This company took a chance on OP and they feel gratitude. This is enough imo.