职场英语：求高薪有学问

Ask for more money before shaking hands

The job offer has been made and the prospective boss suggests a salary that fits the candidate’s lifestyle – it would cover children’s school fees and a couple of up-market holidays a year. The temptation is to shake hands and accept it.

工作机会已经拿到，未来老板提出了适合求职者生活方式的薪酬——足以承担孩子的学费，一年还能享受两次高档假期。诱惑是握手，接受这份工作。

But that would be a mistake, says Daniel Porot: his advice is “always negotiate”. Mr Porot, managing director of Porot Associates and author of 101 Ways To Improve Your Salary, says: “People associate your skills with a salary level. The higher the salary the better the skills. We have a tendency to respect the things which cost us a lot. Like in love, as a rule, when the thing is more difficult to get it has more value.”

但丹尼尔•波罗(Daniel Porot)认为，那将是个错误。他的建议是“始终要谈判”。波罗是波罗合伙公司(Porot Associates)董事总经理、《提高工资的101种方法》(101 Ways To Improve Your Salary)一书作者。他指出：“人们总是把你的技能和工资水平挂钩。工资越高技能越强。事物越昂贵，我们越珍惜。这是一条规则，就像爱情一样，越难以得到的东西越有价值。”

But can it be that simple in today’s tough employers’ market?

但在当今严峻的就业市场，事情真的可以那么简单吗?

Anne Pritam, a partner in employment and partnership law at Stephenson Harwood law firm, agrees it is worth a try: “There is no reason not to ask, regardless of the climate. As a new recruit, this can be a key moment to land on the right rung of your new employer’s salary ladder and obviously that has a knock-on effect in future years.”

夏信律师事务所(Stephenson Harwood)雇佣与合伙法律合伙人安妮•普里塔姆(Anne Pritam)认为值得一试：“不管氛围如何，没有理由不去问一问。作为新的应聘者，这是踏上新雇主薪酬阶梯上正确台阶的关键时刻，显然这对后续年份有连锁效应。”

It can also stand a candidate in good stead legally, she says: “While there can be acceptable justifications for doing so, there are legal complexities for employers in lowering salary – or even keeping it unchanged when others receive increases – in future years, so it pays to get in at the best realistic level to start with.”

这也可以使应聘者在法律上处于有利地位。她指出：“尽管有可能找到站得住脚的理由，但一般而言雇主在未来年份降薪——或者甚至只是在给别人加薪时保持你的工资不变——是要面对法律复杂性的。因此从一开始就达到现实范围的最佳水平是有好处的。”

Ms Pritam says there are factors that indicate how much more a candidate could realistically request: “Take a look at your bargaining position. How long has the firm been recruiting for this role? Is it now desperate to fill this position? Were there many other suitable candidates?”

普里塔姆指出，有一些因素可以说明，求职者还能现实地多要多少钱：“看看你的谈判地位。这家公司招聘此职有多久了?它急于补上这个职位吗?有很多其他的合适候选人吗?”

She also advises making good use of headhunters or recruitment agents: “Don’t be afraid to ask quite searching questions, such as, ‘Within the scale of executive pay at the company, where would that position me?’”

她还建议充分利用猎头或者招聘代理机构：“不要害怕提出尖锐的问题，例如‘在该公司高管的薪酬尺度上，我将处在什么位置?’”

It is also important to gauge what the future might hold for the pay packet. “Ask what sort of rises might be expected if you perform to all your objectives in the first year. This may give you a clue as to whether you are being ‘bought in’ at a high rate which will plateau, or whether the company is trying to get you cheap and pay you when you start to deliver,” Ms Pritam says.

此外，估计薪酬的未来涨幅也很重要。普里塔姆表示：“问一问，如果你在头一年达到所有绩效目标，你可以期望得到多大的薪酬涨幅?这可能让你了解到，你是以高价‘被买来’，以后薪资涨幅趋缓，抑或公司正试图廉价雇佣你，然后在你开始拿出优良业绩的时候提高薪酬。”

Mr Porot says it is important to act quickly when the subject is raised and offers a few psychological tricks that can help. He suggests staying silent and strong: “Learn to remain silent and to speak as late as possible,” he says.

波罗表示，一旦提到这个话题，就要不失时机地提出这个问题，他还介绍了一些有用的心理技巧。他建议，要保持沉默和坚定：“学会保持沉默，尽量等到最后说话。”

“You have to remember you may be judged on how well you master the situation. Some companies might see salarynegotiation as a demonstration of how well you handle leadership situations.”

“你必须记住，雇主可能根据你多好地把握局面来评价你。有些企业可能认为，薪资谈判展示了你能否处理好需要展示领导力的局面。”

He also suggests repeating the figure offered back to the interviewer and waiting. “If they haven’t talked when you have counted to eight, they probably aren’t going to budge,” he says. If all else fails, he says, try laughter: “My top salary is yours minus 15-20 per cent.”

他还建议，向面试者重复他们报出的数字，然后等待片刻。他说：“如果你数到8时，他们还没有说话，那就可能是他们不准备让步。”他说，如果所有策略都失败，那就试着搞笑一番：“我的最高薪酬期望值比你现在的薪酬低15%至20%。”

Some employers expect candidates to demonstrate their worth to the company and they should be prepared with some tangible justification for their salary – achievements such as reducing operating costs, directly influencing profit, reducing headcount, reducing reporting times, increasing cash flow and contributing to growth.

有些雇主期望求职者展现他们对公司的价值，求职者应该准备好一些切实的理由，为自己提议的薪酬水平提供依据——例如降低运营成本、直接影响利润、精简人数、减少报告时间、增加现金流，以及为增长做出贡献等成就。

There are also things to avoid. For example, the Remuneration Code imposes limits on pay and bonuses in the financial services sector and candidates must make themselves aware of them so that they do not look out of touch or greedy.

还有些事情要避免。例如，《薪酬法》(Remuneration Code)对金融服务业的薪酬和奖金有限制，求职者自己必须意识到这一点，以免显得脱离实际或贪得无厌。

Ms Pritam adds: “Be patient. Senior executive pay may have to be approved by a remuneration committee, the board, or a non-executive director. Without those approvals, companies often cannot legitimately make any binding offer.

普里塔姆补充道：“保持耐心。高管薪酬可能要经过薪酬委员会、董事会或者一名非执行董事批准才行。未经批准，企业往往无法提供任何有法律效力的工作机会。”

“Also, don’t pretend you are holding another, better offer if you aren’t. The truth may well come out and could be viewed as a serious issue clouding your integrity. If you are asking to be ‘made whole’ – ie to be topped up for any rewards or compensation you had to leave behind with a previous employer – bear in mind that a company might be limited in what it can offer to replicate, either by law or its own pay structures.”

“此外，如果手里没有其他更好的工作机会，不要假装有。真相有可能暴露，这会被当作弄虚作假的严重问题。如果你要求‘补足’——也就是说不能低于前雇主提供的奖酬——请记住，一家企业能否原封不动地复制待遇，也许是受到法律或其薪酬结构的限制的。”

There might be occasions during the negotiations when a lawyer needs to be consulted: “If your new employer is offering a guaranteed bonus, a complex pay structure, carried interest plans, profit sharing, or anything else that might be contingent, instruct a lawyer to ensure you are as well protected – and the company is bound as firmly – as it can lawfully be,” says Ms Pritam.

在谈判过程中，有时可能需要咨询律师。普里塔姆表示：“如果你的新雇主提供保证奖金、复杂的薪酬结构、附带权益计划、分享利润，或者任何视情况而定的东西，就应当请一名律师来确保你在法律上受到妥善保护，而且企业受到法律严格约束。”

“Think of the legal fees as a protective investment. If you are a high earner, you can probably afford a few hundred pounds to make sure your six-figure reward package is binding and won’t be withheld from you on a technical drafting point.”

“把律师费当作保护投资。如果你收入很高，你很可能付得起几百英镑的费用，保证6位数的奖酬方案受到法律约束，不会受到技术细节的阻碍。”

On the other hand, candidates must remember that salary is only one part of the negotiation. Other parts of a package might not cost an employer much to provide, especially if schemes are already in place, but which could be very valuable. For example, health insurance, annual health check-ups, and a company vehicle.

另一方面，求职者必须记住，薪酬只是谈判的一部分。方案的其他部分可能不需要雇主付出多少(尤其是如果相关计划已经存在)，但可能非常有价值。例如，健康保险、年度身体检查、以及公司提供的交通工具。

“You may seek a high employer pension contribution to make your remuneration more tax efficient. Or if the role is at board level, you might inquire about directors’ and officers’ liability insurance,” says Ms Pritam.

普里塔姆表示：“你可能想要雇主缴纳较高的养老金，以提高你的薪酬的税收效率。或者如果职位是董事会成员，你不妨问一问董事或者执行官责任险。”