Johannesburg - You may be giving your best at work, but are you being paid what you are worth? And if not, do you know how you can increase your worth so you can increase your take-home pay at the end of the day?
These are questions that every working woman should address, says Natalie Rabson of Boston City Campus & Business College, an award-winning private higher education institution which has been delivering quality education for over 25 years at its 40 plus support centres nationwide.
“We tend to put our heads down and get on with the daily tasks, but it’s important to take a breather and reflect on broader career matters,” she says. “Women’s Month is the ideal time for us ladies out in the workplace to assess where we’re at in our careers and where we’re headed, and this includes looking at pay. Though the reasons why we work may differ, pay and earning potential are factors when we choose courses of study, embark on careers and take on jobs.”
To determine what you’re worth, Rabson recommends speaking to HR and recruitment specialists, both at your company and outside.
You can also do an online search for positions similar to yours and compare what you are getting paid to what is offered by other employers. Just keep in mind when making comparisons that you should take care because each company is different and each individual brings unique skills to the table.
“Be sure to compare apples to apples to avoid becoming disenchanted with your job as a result of incorrect conclusions,” Rabson cautions. “There are many job advertisements and salary surveys available in the public space; they’re interesting to read but they’re not necessarily applicable to your personal work situation. That is why it is usually best to engage in face-to-face discussions with HR and recruitment specialists that you can trust.”
To increase your worth in the workplace, there’s no trick or hidden secret - the best is to increase your knowledge and skills. Depending on your industry and what is on offer at your company, you can do this informally through on-the-job-training at your workplace, or formally by enrolling for further study. Formal training is a great boost for your CV.
“There are many learning programmes available that are affordable and can be done in your own time outside working hours,” Rabson points out. “Through the years, we at Boston have had fantastic success stories of women who enrol for studies at the same time as having a full-time job, a family and children. This year for example we saw working mother of twins Tessa Bircher graduate with our BCom management marketing cum laude, top of the class. This feisty 40-year-old mom decided to get a degree so that she could be considered for senior level positions.”
A wide range of study opportunities are available at Boston, she adds, and you can select from a degree, various diploma and higher certificates, or short learning programmes in IT, management, Events, HR, accounting, marketing and more.
Contact Boston City Campus & Business College at 011 551 2000, email [email protected] or visit www.boston.co.za for more information.
THE STAR