Salary Calculator

What is Salary?

A salary is normally paid on a regular basis, and the amount normally does not fluctuate based on the quality or quantity of work performed. An employee's salary is commonly defined as an annual figure in an employment contract that is signed upon hiring. Salary can sometimes be accompanied by additional compensation such as goods or services.

Wage

There are several technical differences between the terms "wage" and "salary." For starters, while the word "salary" is best associated with employee compensation on an annual basis, the word "wage" is best associated with employee compensation based on the number of hours worked multiplied by an hourly rate of pay. Also, wage-earners tend to be non-exempt, which means they are subject to overtime wage regulations set by the government to protect workers. In the U.S., these regulations are part of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Non-exempt employees often receive 1.5 times their pay for any hours they work after surpassing 40 hours a week, also known as overtime pay, and sometimes double (and less commonly triple) their pay if they work on holidays. Salaried employees generally do not receive such benefits; if they work over 40 hours a week or on holiday, they will not be directly financially compensated for doing so. Generally speaking, wage-earners tend to earn less than salaried employees. For instance, a barista that works in a cafe may earn a "wage," while a professional that works in an office setting may earn a "salary." As a result, salaried positions often have a higher perceived status in society.
Most salaries and wages are paid periodically, typically monthly, semi-monthly, bi-weekly, weekly, etc. Although it is called a Salary Calculator, wage-earners may still use the calculator to convert amounts.

Miscellaneous Employee Benefits

While salary and wages are important, not all financial benefits from employment come in the form of a paycheck. Salaried employees, and to a lesser extent, wage-earners, typically have other benefits, such as employer-contributed healthcare insurance, payroll taxes (half of the Social Security and Medicare tax in the U.S.) that go towards old age and disability, unemployment tax, employer-contributed retirement plans, paid holiday/vacation days, bonuses, company discounts, and more. Part-time employees are less likely to have these benefits.
Miscellaneous employee benefits can be worth a significant amount in terms of monetary value. As such, it is important to consider these benefits as well as the base wage or salary offered when choosing between jobs.

Self-employed Contractors

Self-employed contractors (freelancers who sell their goods and services as sole proprietorships) typically provide their own rates, which can be hourly, daily, or weekly, etc. Also, contractors generally do not have benefits such as paid time off, cheaper health insurance, or any other monetary perks typically associated with full-time employment. As a result, their pay rates should generally be higher (sometimes significantly so) than the salaries of equivalent full-time positions. Nevertheless, rates in the real world are driven by many factors, and it is not rare to see contractors take lower compensation.

How Unadjusted and Adjusted Salaries are calculated?

Using a $30 hourly rate, an average of eight hours worked each day, and 260 working days a year (52 weeks multiplied by 5 working days a week), the annual unadjusted salary can be calculated as:

$30 × 8 × (260) = $62,400

As can be seen, the hourly rate is multiplied by the number of working days a year (unadjusted) and subsequently multiplied by the number of hours in a working day. The adjusted annual salary can be calculated as:

$30 × 8 × (260 - 25) = $56,400

Using 10 holidays and 15 paid vacation days a year, subtract these non-working days from the total number of working days a year. All bi-weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, and quarterly figures are derived from these annual calculations. It is important to make the distinction between bi-weekly, which happens every two weeks, and semi-monthly, which occurs twice per month, usually on the fifteenth and final day of the month.

How to Increase Salary

There are very few people in the world who wouldn't welcome a higher salary, and there are a myriad of ways in which a person can try to do so. While it is definitely easier said than done, it is certainly possible.

• Education — Statistics have shown that the higher the level of education a person attains, the higher their average lifetime earnings. However, becoming more educated for a higher salary does not imply that everyone should immediately go out and receive a higher degree. Proof of knowledge can come in many other different forms. For one, qualifications or certifications are a less time-consuming and financially significant undertaking that can still result in a salary increase. Simply increasing relevant knowledge or expertise that pertains to a niche profession or industry can increase salary. This may involve staying up-to-date on current events within the niche by attending relevant conferences or spending leisure time reading on the subject.
• Experience — The more experience a person has within any niche industry or profession, the more likely their salary will increase over the years, given that they stay within the industry. This may be due to several reasons; for one, it shows that a person has enough interest in the industry to stay within it long-term. Secondly, by lasting within the industry long enough, there is sufficient proof that they are probably somewhat skilled. Employers see these as good signs and are more willing to increase a worker's salary.
• Network — For many niche professions or industries, there are professional organizations or trade associations that help their members network. These organizations try to connect their members with other members who may share the same profession and goals, or work in the same industry, which can potentially lead to job opportunities that can improve the salary.
• Performance Reviews — Most employers give out annual performance reviews to their employees. Most performance reviews usually involve a conversation between manager and employee regarding the past year and how the employee performed, the direction of the employee's role moving forward, including any new responsibilities they may have, and constructive criticism on what they could do better, among other things. Annual reviews that are, for the most part, positive are generally followed by an annual pay raise. If no raise is given, even after a glowing review, it may be in the employee's best interest to ask for a salary increase or begin considering other employment options.
• Negotiate — If a performance review was mostly positive, but no mention of a pay raise is made, it may be worth considering approaching the employer to attempt to negotiate a pay raise. Highlight achievements, particularly those that may have been mentioned in a performance review, such as meeting or exceeding certain sales goals, taking on a number of new job responsibilities, or anything valuable that was contributed to the employer that might warrant a raise. When starting a new job, it is also important to negotiate a higher salary, if possible.
• Change jobs — People that are stuck in a career they dislike with no salary increase and who have exhausted all other options to try to increase their salary may want to consider changing jobs. It is fairly common for some people to have a 10% or more increase in salary from doing so.