Cost of Living Salary Negotiation

There are a lot of misconceptions about salary negotiation and as a HR and Recruitment professional, I can tell you that it is ok to negotiate your salary.  To have a successful salary negotiation, you need to choose the right time and approach. I specialise in expatriate compensation and international recruitment so I am going to focus on salary negotiation when moving to a new city or country for a job.

One of the generally accepted and genuine reasons for requesting a higher salary from an employer is cost of living differences. Let’s face it, we all want to earn more and I believe that to everyone, an employer will never pay you what you think you are worth. However while you can ask for a higher salary because you simply feel you are worth more, you are more likely to get an increase if the reason is to cover the cost of living in your job destination city.

If you are moving to another city or country for a job, you want to ensure that you are not financially worse off in your new city. To achieve this, you need to know the cost of living in your new city compared to your current city and how much you need to earn for the cost of living. There are several unverified cost of living information on the internet, but if you are serious about earning the salary that increases your standard of living or at least maintains your current standard of living, you need to have accurate and credible cost of living information.

You can use the Personal Salary Expectation Report created when you use the Worldwide Cost of Living Salary Calculator at www.salaryexpectation.com to find out exactly how much you need to earn and negotiate a higher salary for the cost of living in your destination city. If you have been made an offer, use the report to review your offer and get a salary increase if required. If your company is moving you to another country, use your report to negotiate your relocation package. If you are considering living and working in another country, use your report for your job search.

It’s best not to negotiate salary until you have been made an offer. Using credible cost of living salary information like the Personal Salary Expectation Report for your salary negotiation will give you the best chance of getting an increase.