How To Get Negotiating Power In An Hour

As the legal tide changes, women are in a better position than ever

When I was offered my first job, it didn’t occur to me to do anything other than to smile, say thank you and accept the deal on the spot. After all, I got the job! Why wouldn’t I feel anything but flattered and thankful that I was the chosen candidate?
 
The same story played out with my next position. It wasn’t until I’d been working for a few years and achieved a fairly high level of responsibility that it dawned on me that I could—and should!—negotiate any job offer. By that time, the losses to my earnings had compounded.
 

Unfortunately, I’m not the only woman with a story of how she didn’t ask for more. Research shows that 57 percent of men request more money when they get a job offer, while only 7 percent of women attempt to negotiate. We’ve heard all sorts of reasons for this: Women worry about being perceived as too demanding. They don’t want to appear ungrateful. Or they simply can’t get up the nerve. Sadly, some don’t even realize that negotiation is an option—even in 2018.
 
I’m convinced that if more women pushed for more money, we could chip away at the gender wage gap. On the whole, women still earn only 80 cents for every dollar paid to men, and the disparities are even greater for black and Hispanic women. Shifting the paradigm will take more than negotiation skills—we’ll also need to address low pay in women-dominated fields, gender and caregiving stereotypes, and straight-up sexism—but every little bit helps.
 
These days, it’s not as easy for employers to undercut women’s pay by basing it on their past salary as it was when I started my career. Eleven states and nine localities now have legislation in place that prohibits businesses from asking applicants about previous compensation. Advocating for more and better equal pay laws as well as working to improve employer practices and workplaces are other key components in American Association of University Women’s (AAUW) ambitious multipronged effort to close the gender pay gap by 2030.
 
As the legal tide changes, women are in a better position than ever to push back when hiring managers request that they share their salary history. Like many women, I learned the value of negotiating the hard way. Now I’ve made it my job to ensure that you don’t have to. So, let’s get to work!

Kim Churches is CEO of American Association of University Women. Kim currently also serves as the chair of the BUILD Metro DC board and is on the board of the Virginia Center for the Literary Arts. She is also a member of the International Women’s Forum of Washington, D.C. Visit www.aauw.org Connect Kim Churches