Got a performance rating of Exceeds Expectations. My boss requested a significant salary adjustment and I was denied and given the standard 2.5%. Should I quit my job?

[u/FapForYourLife]

I was originally promoted within my company to create a new department about 1.5 years ago. I’ve since worked my ass off and spent the last year doing managerial level work for non-managerial pay ($47k).

I initially accepted this offer as it was in line with my experience at the time but I’ve now shown that my capabilities go far beyond what was originally expected of me. My market value is between $60-75k based on the title I should have.

My boss agreed with this and requested a large pay bump prior to my review. He was denied and told I’d receive the standard 2.5% that everyone else got and could renegotiate in 6 months.

The problem with this is that I was told the same thing the last time I requested a raise and it was never followed up.

I’ve set up a meeting to ask what specific goals and milestones are in place for this 6 month period.

Are they saying to renegotiate in 6 months because raises were already budgeted for review time, or are they just trying to pay me as little as possible.

Worth noting that I love my job - I self manage with hardly any supervision as I chat with my boss every Friday about what’s going on. Should I just leave now or wait until I discuss why my salary adjustment was denied with the CEO?

Edit: I don’t plan to quit without receiving an offer from another company - just asking if it’s worth negotiating with my current employer or if I should just take more money somewhere else.

Edit 2: Holy hell I only expected to get 5-10 responses. Thanks everyone for the help!

Current plan is to discuss why this happened and to also shop around for other jobs. Probably won’t use an offer as leverage although I’ve seen others here do so successfully. Cheers, all.

[u/dr_gonzo]

"never counter-offer when somebody wants to leave."

I'm kind of surprised at how many redditors are saying otherwise. In my experience, that's a de facto policy at most companies, and even an explicitly stated policy at some.

I think most employers hold the view that if someone is unhappy enough to go find another job offer, the employer is better off to let them go and do it amicably.

Finally, I think some (clearly, not all) employees over-inflate the consequences of them leaving. I left a job a while back (where, of course, I was essential) and a surly colleague informed me that my departure would leave the the same hole you'd leave if you pulled your arm out of a bucket of water. (e.g. none, ha.)

Counter-offers run all kinds of risks for employers. They set a precedent for other employees, and you could also be just stringing along an unhappy employee for a few more months while they make life miserable for the whole team.

[u/SwatLakeCity → u/dr_gonzo]

Counter-offers run all kinds of risks for employers.

So does stiffing supposedly crucial employees. If OP is as important as he says then him getting a pittance for a raise should tell all of his co-workers that they have zero value to their employer. Why give a fuck about your performance review if you know for a fact that exceeding expectations only benefits your boss?

[u/pitathegreat → u/dr_gonzo]

I think this can go either way, if you’ve been an otherwise good employee. I’ve quit a job and been asked if a higher salary would make me reconsider. I’ve seen several others get counter offers on more money or other perks. You don’t need to be unhappy to leave, there just may be a better opportunity or change in circumstance. In one case, a coworker needed to scale back to take care of an aging parent, so she was going to take a job closer to them. They counter offered to let her work from home four days a week.

[u/spookmann → u/dr_gonzo]

Absolutely. I've been on both sides of the equation. I have accepted more money to stay in a painful job (it didn't fix things) and I have counter-offered (it didn't fix anything).

There MAY occasionally be an opportunity to say something along the lines of "Thank you <employee>, the things that are making you unhappy have been ignored for too long, and you finally took a stand. We finally managed to get head office to take notice. I have support now to fix X, Y, and Z. If you stayed, it would help to make a difference."

But damn girl, but you had better follow through! :)