Aside from obvious job related performance issues and aside from a lack of job experience, there are 4 reasons your job may not pay well. These reasons are standard regardless of job and they hold true in virtually all economic situations.
People complain about a certain “important” job paying less than an “unimportant” job. They complain their job is much more vital to the company than another job. You read that teachers are paid less than athletes, that crisis counselors are paid less than movie stars, that managers are paid far less than CEO’s. Why? Why is a teacher paid less than an athlete? Why does one job pay far less than another job?
1. When there are a lot of people able and willing to do a certain job, that job generally doesn’t pay well. It’s old supply and demand economics. The greater the number of available applicants, the lower the job has to pay in order to adequately fill the position.
Right about now you’re probably thinking, “No kidding.” But if you’ve ever decried the high salaries of NBA stars, comparing them to the pay of your child’s 2nd grade teacher, you’ve fallen into the trap. How many people can teach elementary school compared to how many people can play in the NBA? It doesn’t matter how things “should” be, what matters is how things are. When it comes to a job, the number of people who can push a broom is greater than the number of people who can build a broom is greater than the number of people who can successfully run a broom manufacturing company.
2. A job requiring specialized skills or education will pay more than a job that doesn’t. A trauma doctor is a highly specialized job, so is a lawyer, a cardiologist, a nuclear physicist, a cruise ship captain, a baseball pitcher, and a high performance CEO. The more specialized the skill, the greater the job will pay. The greater the job has to pay.
3. An unpleasant job will generally pay less than another job. Holding constant for the amount of relative demand, if a job is disgusting (cleaning out septic tanks), very dangerous (logging), or boring/repetitive (factory work), that job will generally pay less.
4. If the demand for services that the job fulfills is low, that job will not pay very well. Alaskan crab fishermen have a very dangerous job that should fall under #3, but the demand for crab meat is great…and so is the pay. Granted, the demand for quality elementary school teachers is broad, but the supply of teachers is high enough to counter any significant increase in pay.
Think about the demand for a movie star, a country music singer, or a really good marketing executive versus the demand for a hamburger flipper, a delivery driver, or a general laborer. Which job is easily filled and which job is very difficult to fill? That will let you know which job will pay better.
Should you change careers for the money? In an answer, no, not if you enjoy what you do. THAT is much more important in the long run than the paycheck. But, if you are only working for a paycheck and you do not particularly enjoy your job, then the answer changes to an unqualified yes.
Your next step is to identify and match your current skills and abilities to the job you’d like to have.
Here’s what some noteworthy bloggers are saying about jobs, job searching, and interviews:
How to do a Telephone Job Interview @ Cash Money Life.
10 Ways to Get More Out of Work and Life @ Get Rich Slowly.
Questions that May Help You Find Your Purpose @ Semi-Charmed Wife.
How to Interview for a Job Without Raising Suspicions @ Free Money Finance
[tags]job, jobs, people, pay, demand[/tags]
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{ 21 comments }
I think my former field (journalism) is facing the first scenario. There’s a lot of competition for news jobs, and the pay just isn’t that great.
For my situation, the prospective pay would have been so low, it wasn’t worth taking at all. So now, I’m a freelancer.
@Kacie:
Thanks Kacie, I bet you’re a lot happier too!
I’ve thought about doing some freelance work, and probably will start sometime in the fall.
I might need you to give me some advice!
I’m not sure if my first comment posted, so I’m going to try again.
Anyway, my former field (journalism) seems to have a large supply of job applicants, so maybe that’s why the pay is pretty low.
In my case, the job I was seeking paid so low (I was offered less than $9/hour with no benefits) that I decided not to take it. It was a temporary reporting position to cover someone’s leave of absence.
The hiring editor told me, “It’s better than nothing.”
Uh, no, it’s not. I’m now a freelancer, and things are a lot better for me!
As for that last reporting gig, I don’t know if they found someone to fill it or not.
@Kacie:
“Better than nothing” yeah, so is digging ditches and cleaning the editor’s house. ANYthing is better than nothing. THat’s not why someone applies. You’d think that someone who rose to that position would “get it” but apparently he didn’t.
Ron, another excellent post as usual! Thanks much! (Am bookmarking this for a good friend who’s moving to my neck of the woods in the next few months.. He’ll probably get a lot out of this!)
@le_mous:
Thanks, I hope you and your friend enjoy the article and are able to glean a little something from it (I hope that about all my articles!)
This falls under #1 but jobs that are ‘fun’ to do, don’t pay well.
Sport journalism – there are a lot of people who like writing and sports, so the field ends up being very competitive.
Blogging – this falls under #1 and #4 – again, a lot of people like to write and in fact will do it for free.
Mike
@Four Pillars:
Great point. The fortunate thing is that if you’re a really, really good writer and can manage to develop a following (and maybe a radio talk show on sports) you CAN make it! It also helps to always stir up a little controversy!
Could also be “where you live”…I just saw that in the small town we are moving to in New Mexico, they start rookie police off at $15 an hour. Can you imagine? But I guess that is pretty good for up there!. Luckily, we have our work we are taking with us!
@David:
That translates to roughly $30,000/year without any overtime or benefits.
Police work could easily fall into the dangersous category…actually, I’m pretty certain it does.
As a general rule of thumb, your tips are spot on. But there are always special cases or differing factors. Location, experience, and union rules often come into play.
(I just like playing devil’s advocate and finding exceptions to the rule!) Thanks for the link.
@Patrick:
Agreed, there are always exceptions. Other factors could be industry trends, the general economy, or a really tightwad of a boss.
Great list and great ideas to help point someone in a direction career-wise.
You nailed my job on #1. Too many applicants.
@Bill:
Thanks, I hope you figure out a way to stand out from the crowd.
I love this post for its perspective. Has me looking at the subject in a new way – very humbling. Thanks so much!
Thank you Patti. I hope you find the job of your dreams!
Absolutely right on Reason #1. There may be a huge supply, but what about the quality of that supply? This is especially true among graphic designers, photographers, and other creative professionals.
Reason #3 can go the other way too. The same unpleasant job made even more unpleasant by 2nd shift or 3rd shift hours can pay more.
Thanks Elliott,
Not to be too picky
but would you say that the high quality designers are in shorter supply and that there is a large supply of mediocre ones?
On reason #3, that’s why the dollars are higher for those shifts…no one wants to work them without added incentives. Economists would say the trade-offs are the same for 1st shift vs 3rd shift, that is to say, considering what YOU give up vs. what the company pays you, the pay is the same even if the dollars are more. But remember what Reagan said, “If you lined up all the world’s economists end to end, you still wouldn’t reach a conclusion.”
Ron,
You’re right about the high quality designers being in short supply. The unfortunate side effect is, the exceptional ones are lumped in with the rest of the pack.
Thanks Elliott,
I can see how that would make it tough. Is there a reasonable way for the top quality designers to stand out or is it a matter of developing good networking skills that will make a difference?
Most of the jobs I got were through networking. I only ever got one job through resume blasting.
Good networking skills make the difference, no matter what field you’re in. You hear about opportunities before they’re broadcast on CareerBuilder or Monster.com. Those sites cost a big chunk of change for employers, so employers naturally go for the free or cheap measures first, then step up the spending if the position isn’t filled.