Haggling after accepting job offer.

LegacyUser

This is a first world, work problem.

I've been looking for a new job for the last few months. I'm not in a huge hurry and am picky

I was offered a role a few weeks ago that I was happy with and accepted. They're going through their due diligence now. Super sloooow but that doesn't really affect me and I know I'll pass. I don't get to sign the contract until their due diligence is done.

So until it's signed I've been doing interviews to keep the options open.

However last week I was offered a second job. I thought about it but I checked with the original company and they're nearly complete and have no issues. So I turned the second job down.
They came back with a better offer. It's slightly better than the first job in regards to money.

There are other factors for the first job which still tip it in their favour. (Slightly better commute (nothing major), better pension, days off, training etc.).

I was asking a couple of peers about what they'd think and they think I should go back to company one and ask for more money.
If you were hiring and somebody came back to you looking for more money what would you think. The job is senior and I know it's hard to fill so if I turned it down on them they could be another 6 months looking again. Its an international company with offices in the UK but they they have to hire in Dublin as they need my role in the EU (thank you Brexit).

I don't like haggling but then another way of looking at it if I got an extra €5K that'd be €2500 in my pocket each year and obviously affects pension / bonus etc.

So would I be a dick to go back looking for more or should I just take the original offer?

rd1izb7lvpuksx

You can certainly go back, if you get the messaging right. However, just asking may sour the employer to you (rightly or wrongly, they might question your commitment or integrity).

If you're prepared to risk losing the job, then I'd definitely go back and explain the situation, saying that you've been headhunted and are considering the role because of the salary. I'd then list some reasons that I'd like to work for the company, and ask if salary is renegotiable. I would only do it if I was prepared to walk if I didn't get the increase.

seamus

As above, get the messaging right. So not, "Give me more money or I won't accept", rather, "Another company has come in with an offer that's €5k more than yours, and I would really prefer to go with you".
The worst thing they can do is say that they've already gone as high as they can. Then you go away for half a day to think about it, and come back and accept the job you want.

Also, going back to a HR/Recruiter type person is better than going back to the hiring manager. HR won't take it personally and they may not even bother going to the manager to get approval before increasing it.

I have done this in past. I accepted a job that represented a 10% increase in salary. But when the contract arrived I noticed that the contract hours were 42.5 instead of the 37.5 I had previously. Which represented an overall decrease in salary. Explained this to the recruiter and got it bumped by another 10%.

razorblunt

Yep as per above, get the messaging right but something definitely worth chatting about.

noveltea

100 % yes you should ask. If you dont ask you wont get. I changed job in January, and the job I was with offered me more to stay, I went to my now new employer told them this and they matched that.

OMM 0000

I've hired people who asked for more money.

I've never been offended or thought they were being a dick.

It is a normal part of hiring people.

If they can afford it, they will meet your demand.

As others have said, just do it nicely and have a clear idea in your head of your move if they say no.

3DataModem

I've asked for more money a couple of times. Once, the offer was withdrawn. This was a bizarre situation to say the least. Go with your gut.

skallywag

There is never an issue with asking for more money.

I did it myself during the negotiating phase for the position I am currently in, I was not successful, but it actually worked in my favour in the eyes of my new boss as it showed I had the confidence to do so and was not willing to compromise without putting forward my own thoughts on the matter. He made good counter arguments as to why they would not offer me more, I accepted their point, we shook on it, and I signed the paperwork a short while after.

It's also the case that team members who I hire now into my team will often ask for more money when I hire them, and it's never been seen as a negative.

That said, if I agree on a salary with a new potential team member, and they accept, even verbally, then I consider it bad form to come back afterwards looking for more, even if the contract has still not been signed. OK, so you got another offer which is higher, but when is this then going to end? Am I going to have the same employee marching to my desk demanding another 10% etc. a month into the job, because of this, that, or the other?

If you make a verbal agreement then you should stick to it. It's up to the employee to get a feeling for what their worth is and what they are really willing to accept in order to take the position. When asked the usual interview question about what salary one expects, be open and honest about what your expectations really are. You are never going to offend, you only run the risk of looking somewhat naive if you ask for something which is completely out of the ballpark.

Pelvis

skallywag wrote: »

That said, if I agree on a salary with a new potential team member, and they accept, even verbally, then I consider it bad form to come back afterwards looking for more, even if the contract has still not been signed. OK, so you got another offer which is higher, but when is this then going to end? Am I going to have the same employee marching to my desk demanding another 10% etc. a month into the job, because of this, that, or the other?

If you make a verbal agreement then you should stick to it. It's up to the employee to get a feeling for what their worth is and what they are really willing to accept in order to take the position. When asked the usual interview question about what salary one expects, be open and honest about what your expectations really are. You are never going to offend, you only run the risk of looking somewhat naive if you ask for something which is completely out of the ballpark.

IMO, if it takes you as an employer weeks between offering someone a job and actually getting them to sign a contract. Then you should be prepared for the fact that they may receive other offers in the interim, and as such might ask you to match them or better them. All part and parcel imo.

As for sticking to a verbal agreement, sorry but I have to laugh when that's coming from an employer. If you are interviewing to replace an employee that is critical to the business, and make an offer to someone, but the employee leaving changes their mind and wants to stay, are you telling me you are going to hire the new candidate anyway? No, of course not.

skallywag

Pelvis wrote: »

IMO, if it takes you as an employer weeks between offering someone a job and actually getting them to sign a contract. Then you should be prepared for the fact that they may receive other offers in the interim, and as such might ask you to match them or better them. All part and parcel imo.

Agree completely with this.

The formal contract needs to be sent out to the new employee ASAP, waiting weeks is simply not acceptable. The employer needs to take responsibility here. If I am making an offer I make sure that it goes out latest one week after a verbal agreement. I need to do a lot of things in the background to make this happen, it's a lot of effort, but it's necessary. If I leave someone waiting around for weeks then it's giving a very poor initial impression.

Pelvis wrote: »

As for sticking to a verbal agreement, sorry but I have to laugh when that's coming from an employer. If you are interviewing to replace an employee that is critical to the business, and make an offer to someone, but the employee leaving changes their mind and wants to stay, are you telling me you are going to hire the new candidate anyway? No, of course not.

You can laugh all you want, but it doesn't change the fact that coming back looking for more money, after you have said that you are happy with the offer, is not going to look good. It would make me very wary of how this person is going to act in the future.

As for your example of a valued employee leaving, it's not something I have ever come across to be honest with you. Yes, key members have decided to leave several times, and when this has happened I have done everything within my power to try to retain them. There then comes a point when it's clear that they are going to leave regardless of what I do, and at that stage we open the recruitment process to fill the position. I've not come across a situation where the person in question then decides to stay at the last minute, once a replacement has been identified.