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Good: Offer! Bad: Low-balled...
So after months of job searching after moving to the west coast, I finally have an offer. It's for a great company, everybody is lovely, the role is nice, etc... Also, the people there really seemed to like me.
However, while I knew it was a contract position (hourly), I just found out that the salary was only going to be half of what I'd expected (I've done a lot of research). It is also far less than what I was making before, in a lower COL area.
The salary is laughably low. They want technical and programming skills, experience, knowledge, and yet they're not willing to pay for it. The company recruiter told me that he went over the figure with me when we first talked (he absolutely didn't!), and that I should have said something earlier if salary was "so important" to me. I told him that the lowest I was willing to accept was about 20% more than the $xx/hr offered. He said he wished he could offer more, but they couldn't budge.
This is a giant, wealthy company. I can't believe they're low-balling me like this.
What should I do? 1). Tell the recruiter I'm not interested, 2). Ask for some more time, or 3). Take the offer, since it's easier to find a job if you already have one.
I'm leaning towards 1. I think any attempt to delay would be transparent, and look bad. And if I take the job and leave immediately, it will make me look like a job jumper.
Re: Good: Offer! Bad: Low-balled...
The recruiter gets a commission when they place you, so there are times, like this one, when they will place the company's needs over yours, because he wants to sort of strong arm you into taking the position.
If you really cannot make the salary work, then turn it down.
Have you talked to colleagues in your new area about it? There may be reasons for the laughably low salary, e.g., lack of demand in that geographic area. If you've done local area research, I'd be inclined to walk because bad pay might just be the beginning (did they give you details on benefits as well? Good/bad?). If your research is based on where you used to work and where you have colleagues in other places, I might reconsider and try to meet them in the middle.
If you're currently unemployed and "just need a job" IMO that's easily explainable if you ultimately want to jump for a better position. I agree that asking for more time is moot. Just give them a decline, accept, or put it back in their court with a best and final offer.
Update:
So I declined. He wanted to know by today. This area has a very high COL, and the salaries (especially for what I do) tend to be much higher here.
This position came with zero benefits, which is a concern, because I'm about to age out of being covered under my parents' insurance.
There were other factors too- the commute is tedious, and the work seemed like it'd be stressful. Not worth the trouble.
I did my research through glassdoor.com. I've found it to be extremely accurate so far. The anonymous reviews of my previous work place are spot-on.
But I had another interview this morning, and it went well. So hopefully this one works out. If not, then I can always audition for reality tv. (jk)
Good for you. I think you made the right choice, especially if your next salary was to be in any way based off of what this salary would have been.
If it is a contract position with no benefits, I would definitely not take less money than I was expecting (unless I was desperate for a job). In that case, actually, you should have been in a position to bargain for more money.
When it is right, it will work out.
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