Are You Earning Less than You're Worth? Here's How to Tell

By Lovella Bantasan | Feb 24, 2016 10:29 AM EST

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Most employees feel their work excels above the average worker, and that they are not adequately paid compared to other employees. Everyone sometimes has this gut feeling  they are paid less than what they deserved and yet almost nobody does anything about it.
So how can you actually tell if you are being paid your worth? Here are some tips to consider:

1. Public data

Look up government salaries. In the U.S. and other countries, government salaries are public record, so if you can find a parallel for your position, even if it's not perfect, it can help you get a sense of the salary range. You can also check wage websites. These websites make salary research much easier, but they may not feature your exact job description, and won't take into account many factors like location or experience.

2. Put into your consideration the Benefits

The benefits package you receive should also figure into the equation. "In some cases, a generous benefits package can balance out a lower salary," Palmer says. "After all, benefits are worth money."
Katie Donovan, founder of Equal Pay Negotiations in Medford, Massachusetts suggested utilizing some resources that offer calculators Katie Donovan. Examples are salary.com, Payscale.com, and Salaryexpert.com.

3. Ask other people in your field.

Another way to tell if you are being paid what you're worth is to compare your salary to that of your coworkers in the same or similar positions. Look for similar positions on online job boards. This can be hit or miss as job postings don't always list a salary range or starting salary, but some do, and they can help you start to see a range. Remember that many times these jobs could be entry-level, and may be at the low end of the range because of that.

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