Disappointed with your recent salary review? Don't worry — you have options. A tight labour market and skills shortages have employers scrambling to secure top talent, using attractive benefits packages and higher salaries as their go-to tactic. Play your cards right, and you'll likely walk away with a competitive salary and benefits package befitting your skills and experience.Our recruitment experts share advice on what to do after a disappointing review of salary. Get tips on the next steps, options to consider, and bargaining tactics that ensure you maintain the upper hand.Read more: Salary review and performance review: what’s the difference?
Your employers won't make it easy for anyone requesting a pay rise. But remember, it costs a lot more to recruit new employees, onboard them and get them working to maximum productivity than to keep existing staff members happy and engaged. So, if you're confident to return to your employer following your salary review and ask for more, they may find you difficult to ignore.Our recruitment experts recommend starting with a more aggressive negotiation stance. This could include applying pressure to your manager by bringing out examples of salary benchmarks for your region, level of experience, and industry. Using a longstanding, trusted industry document like the Robert Half 2025 Salary Guide not only gives you greater bargaining power regarding your salary, but its in-demand roles and skills data can highlight how valuable you are in the industry.Read more: How to answer ‘what are your salary expectations?’
There are several reasons we’d recommend avoiding the temptation to resign from your role to coax a counteroffer from your employer. The first reason is that, by choosing to resign, you’ve broken the bond of trust between your employer and yourself. The second is the implication that, since you’re clearly unsettled and dissatisfied, you’re very likely to move elsewhere even after the offer has been made. Thirdly, your employer can’t guarantee that you won’t repeat this behaviour further down the line now that you know it’s effective. Finally, the last thing employers want to do is set a precedent for making counteroffers and see other employees use resignation as a mechanism for securing a pay raise. If you find yourself in a position where you feel you need to force your employer’s hand to secure a fair salary, it might be time to explore new, better paid opportunities on the job market.Read more: Successfully navigating your employer’s counteroffer
How long has it been since you’ve explored new opportunities on the job market? If you’re struggling to earn your worth in your current role, there’s no harm in returning to the job market to see what else is on offer.According to data collected for the Salary Guide, 44% of businesses plan to implement automation and digital transformation initiatives in 2025, making AI, cloud, automation, and machine learning skills incredibly desirable on the jobs market. Customer service, administrative, and compliance/regulatory/governance are also top functional areas with high predictions for recruitment next year.Our recruitment experts recommend looking through the job boards, recruitment agency websites and classifieds to identify potential new roles. There's no pressure to apply for jobs that don't suit you (after all, you're still in employment) but if you come across an attractive opportunity, why not apply? Performing well at the interview and getting an offer could see you automatically receive a major earnings boost. If you're somebody an employer is eager to bring on board, they may be willing to make an attractive offer or give a ‘golden hello’ to secure your services. Having identified you as their preferred candidate, the last thing they want is to see you accept somebody else's offer or decide to stay put.
Professionals serious about securing their top-end salary should consider working with a recruitment agency when exploring the job market. Recruiters can help identify suitable roles, put you forward for the latest vacancies, and negotiate an attractive pay and benefits package on your behalf.As an intermediary between employers and prospective hires, recruiters are ideally positioned to represent both parties' interests. They have specialist knowledge of the industry, jobs market, candidate demands and employer expectations. Knowing how much employers are able and willing to pay, they can use this information to your advantage.Get in touch today
How can I improve my chances of a successful negotiation?When considering how to ask for salary increase, we recommend starting with salary benchmarks and concrete evidence of an exemplary performance. We recommend using salary benchmarking data relevant to your industry, experience/seniority level, and region to show the industry average. This can prove that if your employer is paying below the industry benchmark, you'd likely get the asking salary with a competitor. It's also helpful to gather and present evidence that proves your exemplary performance. This includes data, metrics, feedback, and examples which prove you aren't simply doing your job but excelling at it. It's also helpful to showcase any in-demand skills for your role that you may have learned since your last salary review — the hiring landscape is hungry for top talent. If you have the skills to warrant an attractive offer from a competitor, your employer may want to increase your pay to prevent you from taking your skills elsewhere. Read:How to negotiate a higher salaryWhen should I start looking for a new job?This is entirely at your discretion. If you've been repeatedly turned down for a pay increase and haven't been offered any additional benefits or perks in place of that increase despite proving exemplary performance and in-demand skills, it might be time to start your job search. You can explore the market and attend interviews while still with your current employer and are at liberty to resign once you have a firm job offer. What if my company is experiencing financial difficulties?In situations where your employer is experiencing financial difficulties, there are two routes you could take. The first is to find a new opportunity with an employer who can afford to pay you the salary you deserve (this is business, after all!) and allow your current employer to fill your role with more affordable junior talent or combine it with another role to help cut costs.The second option is to ask for additional perks or benefits to make your remuneration package more attractive. According to our data, employers offer benefits like an agreed bonus, sabbaticals, and company car and perks, including mental health resources, unpaid leave, and a staff benefits hub for 2025. It might be an idea to explore your options and use the knowledge to negotiate a package that makes up for the less-than-stellar salary offering.