Most companies are inclined to think of raises as tiny annual percentage gains, which may keep in step with cost of living increases only if you're lucky. If yo

Most companies are inclined to think of raises as tiny annual percentage gains, which may keep in step with cost of living increases only if you're lucky. If you ask for more than that, managers are trained to save the company money and not honor the request. They're expected to call your bluff. If you show up with an offer from another employer, they may counteroffer, but may just as well let you go because of your "disloyalty". People can and do often suffer retribution when they ask for raises. The business world sees things completely differently than the engineering world.