Salary Story: I Had To Choose Between Debt & Meals

Illustrated by Jessica Meyrick.

In our series Salary Stories, women with long-term career experience open up about the most intimate details of their jobs: compensation. It’s an honest look at how real people navigate the complicated world of negotiating, raises, promotions and job loss, with the hope it will give young women more insight into how to advocate for themselves — and maybe take a few risks along the way.

Been in the workforce for at least five years and interested in contributing your salary story? Submit your information here. Published stories receive £100.

Age: 30
Location: Newcastle
Current industry and job title: Social enterprise, digital inclusion coordinator
Current salary: £35,000
Number of years employed since school or university: Nine
Starting salary: £20,000
Biggest salary drop: From £28,800 to £7,200 in 2019.
Biggest salary jump: From £7,200 to £25,000 in 2019.

Biggest negotiation regret: In one role, I was essentially doing two roles for the price of one. In hindsight, I could have negotiated and asked for a higher salary. However, due to financial struggle and the job market being very difficult, I took the job without thinking too much.

Best salary advice: Research the roles you are applying for, look at what the salaries are in your region and speak to people working in these fields to get a better idea of what the base rate is and what you can earn. The best advice I got was: “Always ask. There's two answers they will give you: yes or no. What's worse is not asking and living with the ‘what if’ that it could have been a yes.”