Salary Secrets Your Company Isn't Telling You

Ever wonder how your company decides what to pay you and how much of a raise you deserve? Get the inside scoop, according to PayScale on how companies determine salaries and wage increases. (Reuters)

Very Few Workers Get More than a 3.9% Raise Although many employees hope to get pay increases of up to 6% to 8%, very few will actually achieve that bump. For many companies, the average budget increase for salaries is about 3.9%, according to PayScale. If you are getting a raise of more than 4% it may not be what you were hoping for, but it still shows your employer considers you a top performer.

We Don't Know the Average Pay for Your Position Despite the plethora of salary information online, that doesn't mean your company knows the national average wages for a person in your field and in your location according to PayScale. By doing your own research and presenting it during your review could help sell your boss on giving you a bigger salary increase. Companies don't want to risk losing talent to their competitors because they are paying below the average. (Reuters)

We Have Short-Term Memory In most workplaces, raises come once a year and employers might not remember the great job you did on a project 10 months ago. Keep track of your achievements throughout the year; when it comes time for your review use your list to make a strong case for a raise. (© RazvanPhotography- Radu Razvan 2008)

Managers Have Very Little Say in Pay Managers often have little influence over their employees pay raises, according to PayScale. So even if you do a terrific job and follow all the pay raise tips, your manager's hands could be tied and your fate lies with a higher level of the management. (Reuters)

We Really Don't Want You to Leave Many workers have experienced their biggest salary jumps when they get a new job or threaten to quit because of another job offer. While it is risky, a potential new gig can be a potent bargaining chip, but it can also lead to you losing your current job. Think it through and be prepared to leave before heading to the bargaining table.