Is it unfair to pay new employees more than existing ones based on hire date?

Question

I already know it's unfair...but I was curious if other companies were like this or even if the Dept of Labour would have a say...basically I have been at a job with a private company for 3 years now, and I have recieved an average raise of $.90/hour each year. I have become aware that new hires have been started at a higher pay than I did so that the latest group (hired in December) still makes $.25 more per hour than me! Some of my colleagues have earned smaller raises too so are earning even less! You know your seniority is useless if you would literally be better off re-applying than being loyal. Am I right to be furious?

Answer 1

When I worked at a privately owned factory, one employee had been there for FIFTY YEARS and was making $12 an hour....after 50 years of dedication and loyalty.

Companies are not loyal to their employees anymore. If you want more money, you do have to get another job.

In the past few years, I have had 3 jobs (always in my profession). After 1-2 years, I would get another job with a $10,000 pay increase for each one. Raises don't come in 5 figures.

Answer 2

Life is not fair. Once you accept that your life will be easier.

Now, to your situation. No, an employer does not have to pay newer workers less than the workers that have been there longer. Unless you have a union to fight that for you, you will not win.

Why would an employer pay a new worker more? That new worker may have special skills that means they can move up in the job with less supervision and fewer errors. It could be that in order to attract a good worker in a competitive job market, they realized you get what you pay for. If someone earns minimum wage, it often means they have minimal skills.

It could be that the workers that are making less are not doing as well as had been hoped by the management. It is cheaper to keep a barely adequate worker than it is to fire one and replace with a new hire. Paying workers less is a passive-aggressive way to get the less than top-notch worker to leave the company on their own.

OR it could be that management does not appreciate the work you have done and the skills that you have acquired and they think that this is all you can do and you have no interest in leaving.

You have a few differenct scenarios here, you pick the one that best fits your personal situation. But it boils down to this:
They do not need to pay you more than they want to if they feel you will not leave for a better job. If you like your job, let them know your feelings. If the management is good and they like your work they'll try to work it out to get you paid more. If they do not, you are better off moving on to a better location. Good Luck!

Answer 3

No company is obligated to pay everyone equally--or pay some people more just for being there longer. The markets change, and sometimes starting salaries are raised or lowered based on supply and demand for employees.

But you CAN ask your supervisor for a raise--you don't even have to admit that you know that newer workers are earning more than you (unless it's public/common knowledge). Just explain that based on your loyaty and experience, you think you deserve a raise.

Be prepared to back up your request with reasons why you deserve it though. The fact is that if you work at a low-skilled job or one where you're easy to replace, you're not going to get much of a raise if they can hire new people for cheaper to do the exact same work. But if they really are hiring new people at a higher base rate, they should have no problem giving you a raise to match that rate (or else it'd cost them more to replace you).

Answer 4

not everything is about hire date & amount per hour some times companies bring in friends & family members just to get people off their asses which sounds dumb as hell but i've had it happen to me. what you need to do is figure out how many of the new hires are making more than you , if they have experience in that field , if you can find the add that was placed for that position , when all of that was done then ask your manager if the two of you can have a closed door meeting as soon as possible in regards to your position within the company, all the while never loosing sight of the facts that you have already collected. when you do have the meeting do not het mouthy or sarcastic & demanding - stay calm , have a list of questions about what you could do to increase your hourly rate, let them know that your willing to learn new things to improve your position within the company and see what kind of responses you get , pay attention to facial movement , hand gestures and so on - at the end if you still feel like your being screwed make sure you say thank you for your time and look for a chance to set up a meeting between his boss - him and you about the situation, state all the facts in a calm manner trying not to piss any one off and if they say can you prove this then you will be ready with all of the additional information that you did not show your boss for what ever reason, this should bring about some change in your favor , but you in turn get screwed again for this action then there are legal ways to get things taken care of like the bbb an attorney that deals solely in employment issues but never make your intentions known right off the bat and never make threats because that will always get you fired. good luck friend keep us posted

Answer 5

Well no company is obligated to pay everyone the same amount nor do they have to honor seniority in your case. 2 people can start a job on the same day with the same qualifications, same background and everything, but one will get paid $10 and the other can get $20. It is all based on what the company "feels" like doing honestly.
In my opinion you should not be furious but you should do something about it, if that means searching for more opportunity.

Answer 6

The department of labour won't care. But you should definitely speak with your manager. Don't tell him/her you know what your coworkers make, but do ask what you can do to make more money. They may find it harder to get on qualified people, so they raised the starting wage. Now if you have an advertisement that shows the starting wage is higher than what you make, I would definitely wave that under their nose.

If you are really unhappy, look for a new job. Sometimes just the threat of you leaving means they will give you a fair raise.

Answer 7

The company should at least bring you up to the new base pay of the job.

Answer 8

thats your oppinon be glad you have a job i been out of work for a year