You go to work in a nursery, pre school, Montessori or whatever style of childcare setting day in and day out and at the end of the month you look at your wage slip and feel that you should be earning more. So what should you do? It is tempting to go to the Nursery Manager and hand in your notice but is that really the answer? No especially if you are happy working at the nursery. Before you run for the hills try these tips.
Timing It is always important that when you speak to your Nursery Manager you don’t walk into the office and blurt out that you want a pay rise. Your Manager may be busy with important paperwork, about to go into a meeting with a parent.It is also worth remembering pay rises potentially happen once a year normally at a set time and therefore it is worth finding out when this happens. The best time to ask is during a performance review as you will then be able to explain why you are worth the salary that you are looking to be paid.If there is no performance review coming up it is better to book an appointment with a brief explanation what the meeting is about so that your Manager can be prepared.
Research Find out what the salary range for your position would be. It does not matter what position you hold – Nursery Assistant, Nursery Nurse, Nursery Room Leader, Deputy Nursery Manager or Nursery Manager – research is important. You can go onto a job site and look at vacancies but always remember you also need to be realistic. Some childcare settings or nursery recruitment agencies exaggerate their salaries in order to attract applications. Salaries greatly differ depending on qualifications, experience, and area. It also depends on how well you do during an interview.
Prepare Before you go into your meeting, make notes so that when you speak you can be precise. Write down all your positive points – good attendance, being a team player, working to best ability, offering to stay behind in order to keep to ratios.
Meeting So after all your preparation, attend your meeting and remember to be calm, polite, speak slowly and concisely. Be prepared to negotiate as the nursery may not be able to give you the full amount that you are looking for. If you are happy with the offer then accept it, if not ask for some time to think about it. If after some thought you are still not happy then it is maybe time to leave?
Being paid for what you are worth is important but so is happiness. There are nurseries out there who pay very high salaries but it does not necessarily mean that you would be happy working there. Good luck with getting the salary that you are looking for.