I saw my role posted for the same salary. With three years experience, shouldn’t I earn more?

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THE QUESTION

My workplace is hiring for the exact same role that I have now. The job posting stated a starting salary that is around what I currently make. Having worked for the same company for three years, this new posting proves I’m being underpaid, considering the institutional knowledge and experience I’ve gained here. I want to be paid more. How can I approach this conversation with my manager? I enjoy this role and company and don’t want to leave. I just want to be paid fairly.

THE FIRST ANSWER

Annika Reinhardt, compensation strategist, Talent Collective, Vancouver

Seeing a job posting for your own role, with a starting salary similar to yours, would naturally make you wonder whether you’re being paid fairly.

With pay transparency legislation in several Canadian provinces, more employers are sharing salary information in job postings. This may also lead them to review market rates and adjust salary ranges. However, they may not have the resources to adjust everyone’s pay right away. This can create pay compression, where there is little difference in pay between new hires and more experienced employees.

Before talking to your manager, here are a few things to consider:

Do your homework: Find out whether your organization has a compensation philosophy that explains how pay is determined, including starting salaries. Take stock of how your skills, responsibilities and contributions have grown over the past three years. Simply being in a role longer doesn’t automatically mean higher pay is warranted, but becoming more skilled and independent in your work can strengthen your case.

Start with curiosity, rather than assuming you’re underpaid. You could say:

“I noticed the starting salary for the role is similar to what I’m currently earning. Given how my skills and contributions have developed, I’d like to better understand how my pay is determined and whether there’s room for an adjustment.”

Agree on next steps: If an immediate increase isn’t possible, ask what would support one, whether an internal compensation review is planned and when you can revisit the conversation.

You can enjoy your job, value your employer and still advocate for fair pay. Coming prepared and being open to your employer’s perspective can go a long way toward having a productive conversation.

THE SECOND ANSWER

Carl Casis, founder, Casis Recruitment Group Ltd., Toronto

This happens a lot. Companies pay new hires market rate while existing staff get small annual bumps. It’s called salary compression and you’re allowed to point it out.

Before going into that conversation, save the job posting and check salary data for your role on sites such as Glassdoor and Levels.fyi. You should have a running log of everything you’ve delivered in the last three years: projects shipped, people you’ve trained and anything that has affected the business. Numbers always help to quantify your impact.

Don’t try to shoehorn the conversation into a one-on-one. Book a meeting specifically about this. Don’t wait for review season either – budgets will already be set by then.

You need to keep this factual, not emotional. Something along the lines of: “I noticed we’re hiring for my role at a salary close to mine. Given my three years here and what I’ve delivered, I’d like to talk about rightsizing my pay.”

Vague asks get vague answers. Be direct.

Expect to hear something like: “I need to check with HR.” That’s normal. Agree on a date to follow up and send a short email recapping the conversation. Use an artificial intelligence transcriber such as Granola, or whatever your company uses, if any.

If the answer is no, ask what it would take to get there and by when, ideally in writing, so there is a clear path.

Lastly, don’t threaten to leave if you don’t mean it. You like it there, so negotiate like someone who wants to stay. Replacing a good employee costs far more than paying them fairly, and most managers know it. If your resentment builds and that negatively affects your job, it might be worth looking at making a move yourself for that larger pay bump at market rate.

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