We speak to lots of lawyers who aren’t necessarily looking to leave their current firms, but who want to ensure that they’re remunerated fairly in their market. However, it’s not always an easy conversation, to approach your boss and negotiate salary.
Whilst we encourage people to contact us when they’re ready to move firms, we also believe that it’s often better for your career to stay and commit to your current firm, as long as you’re valued and respected.
For that reason, we’ve put together a guide to negotiating your salary, to help those who aren’t looking to move, but who want to ensure their salary is at the right level. We’ll keep this short and sweet!
We feel there are three main things to consider, before approaching your boss and asking for a salary increase, which are to:
Gather information so that you can understand what the market rate is for someone at your level, within a similar level of law firm. You can get this information from us, here at Aspiria Legal, or from other sources. Either way, by using solid market data, you put yourself in the strongest possible position to be able to argue your case.
Often in law, firms pay lawyers based on their PQE. That’s all very well, but there’s often a huge disparity between what people of similar PQE levels bill or bring to the team. I’m a big advocate of people being paid based on the value they bring. For example, if you’re billing circa £200K, then a salary of circa £60K (or just under a third of what you’re billing) seems fair and widely accepted across the industry.
If you can approach the meeting with confidence and professionalism, it will go a long way. Explain the research you’ve done, as well as clearly outlining the value you’re bringing, in a confident, calm and positive manner.
If the figures add up, and if the leadership team value what you bring to the firm, it will be extremely difficult for any employer to argue against an increase!
If you want to find out more about salaries in your market, or if you’re keen to discuss your market value, please get in touch with James (for Exeter) or Katie (for Bristol and Plymouth) at any point, for a confidential and no-pressure chat.