Salary Increase & Feeling Underpaid

[Charliesunnysky10]

I'm the administrator of a shopping centre. My boss (the manager) was off sick for several weeks earlier this year, and I covered her duties. When she returned in April, she handed in her notice and left in July. Her replacement started 2 weeks ago so again, I've been covering the role as much as I can for the past 3 months. I had a 2.5% salary increase at my review last Christmas, which didn't keep up with inflation but I loved my job at that time so accepted it was all the budget could allow. The past 12 months has been tough, coping largely on my own. I get paid £20k for full time job, which is £3k less than similar administrator roles. I know the company saved £12k by having no centre manager for 3 months while I covered so I asked the senior associate for a £3k pay rise. She said the company do a pay review for all employees end of Jan so nothing can be done until then. I'm annoyed that I'll be going another 3 months on crap wages while I have to settle in the new manager. I started looking for another job and was shocked to see I could get a receptionist job for £23k and not have to do budgets, invoicing etc. However, I really don't want to leave because I've been at this shopping centre 10 years, live 15 mins walk away, love the people here and we're about to be part of an exciting new refurb. I want to try and make it work here, but I feel really undervalued, being £4k underpaid, and I need that extra money to keep up with inflation - I'm using my savings to meet the shortfall each month.
I'm so torn and don't know what to do for the best.

To be honest, I find it illogical that somebody would get a permanent payrise because they temporarily provided cover at a higher level and I don’t think as a line of argument this will work. You should have negotiated a temporary uplift whilst you were providing that cover, but that is going to be hard / probably impossible to negotiate successfully after the fact.

But it does look like you are being underpaid and I think you should seek a payrise, but base it on market rates not the temporary cover argument above. I also think it is fair enough to say salaries will be reviews in January, companies normally do this as a once a year process. I have only come across off cycle increases we somebody has secured a job elsewhere and resigned.

In your position, I would make very clear that you are expecting a significant increase in January and then see what happens. If it does not happen, then you need to leave. Sometimes leaving is required to get salary up to market rate.

@Aprilx Thank you and yes, that does make sense.

I've told them my salary should be £23k to bring it closer to being in line. I'll have to see what I'm offered in Jan and go from there.
The company offer a discretionary bonus and I've asked the senior associate to consider how much I step up to help the new manager as she settles in. And how much I stepped up to cover the duties of the absent manager over those 5 months when they award with as I think I'm right in saying the amount is non-negotiable.

It would be hard to leave this place and I'd be very sad, so I hope it doesn't come to that. But at the moment I'm unhappy and not giving my best because I'm not fairly remunerated.

Mostly if you want pay to keep up you need to move around

I should have added that the discretionary bonus is in December's pay.

@midgetastic Yes, again it makes sense. It's just that I've been happy here and considered myself lucky to have found a fulfilling job with nice people that's so close to home and suitable hours. But I can't keep dipping into my savings each month or cutting back so drastically I can't have a life outside work. That doesn't make sense!

It's a bummer I know - but that's what they rely on

I'm curious, why haven't you applied for the managers role, if you have been doing it temporarily, or would you not want it full time?

Sadly, the only way to get increases often, is to move around. I stayed in a job for 20 years because I loved it so much, and when the firm merged with another one, I got an instant pay rise of £2K because I was underpaid compared to equivalent staff in the new firm.

Hi Charlie, I work in a sort-of-related industry and can confirm that you’re absolutely underpaid. By shopping centre, do you mean a big mainstream centre like an Intu or is this a smaller council owned affair?

If it’s the former, then the owners will likely be outsourcing a lot of the property management to an outfit like CBRE/Workman/JLL. You might start enquiring whether there’s an admin roles at the prop management co which means you could stay involved with the centre? Especially if there’s a big project going on, they may want extra admin support to the project managers or something.

@CrampMcBastard yes, I work for one of those property management companies. I think they know I'm underpaid but it's a community shopping centre with a very tight budget and if they can get away with paying me peanuts they absolutely will, because I've been here 10 years and at 50, probably think I'll stay for another 10. It's a really good suggestion, providing support for the project managers but the landlord/client is managing it with their own outsourced team and I worry what will happen 18 months down the line once the project is complete. I've been TUPE'd twice in 5 years as management of the shopping centre shifted from client to Savills then the current managing agent and each time it's been a big shift and quite the challenge so I don't want to invite the devil to my door 😁

@skyeisthelimit I get asked this a lot. I'm not qualified - the managing agent and landlord want someone with extensive retail real estate management experience, preferably a graduate in business or retail management. I don't want the position full time, or to get qualified because my kids and elderly father need a lot of support - my partner works abroad and I don't have any other family support. I would step up short term in a heartbeat because I care about the centre but it's at a cost to me mentally because I'm doing my own job at the same time and it's stressful.

Charliesunnysky Thanks for answering that, I was curious and I totally get your reasons why not. I qualified to a point in my profession but then didn't have the time, money or mentality to want to qualify further, I am happy with what I have.

It was actually one of the reasons that I ended up leaving my job and going self employed as I had 20 years experience and was starting to have to answer to people half my age with higher qualifications but no practical experience. Another reason was that once the firm merged it lost the local friendly feel that I had in my previous firm.

You have to do what makes you happy and I totally get that doing the job full time would not work for you.

@skyeisthelimit That's great, and I wish you lots of success. It can be quite a brave move going self-employed but it sounds like a good move and for the right reasons.

Leaving generally is the only way to get recognition. Some people get offered a decent increase to stay but I hate that fact a company will only do that when you resign. If they value you they should pay you fairly, few companies do that

I left a job I loved because of similar issues. It took me several years & jobs before I found one I loved again but I'm back in the position of being there 3 years and being underpaid. I did ask for a rise and got it but I felt under appreciated by not being offered it without asking. I'd saved the company a fortune within my job role and it hurt. I'm going to stay for now but I now know any increase will only come from being asked and I know I will have to have documented evidence of why I deserve it

@Invisableperson I'm sorry you had to fight for the pay you deserve. But you made representation successfully and good for you.
For myself, I don't mind pointing out where I'm underpaid as I know budgets are tight and they won't give money away where they don't have to. They can't see everything at site level either so won't know I'm doing everything - by the very nature of the fact the site is running smoothly, they have no cause to look closer. I should have spoken up sooner to ask for a temporary enhancement. As soon as I asked for the pay rise and told them why, they reallocated several key duties from me that I'm not being paid to do. That's all well and good but I'm still underpaid for an administrator. I do feel like if they up my salary in line with similar positions, I'd be happy and not mind having to point it out - I just want to be paid in line with the job role and not struggle each month.