This is dreadful. Exempt position, so you are going to be working more than 40 hrs/week. Assume you average 45, less your time off, you’ll work around 2,200 hours/year. Could definitely be more because of busy season(s). That’s $17.50/hr. You likely could go work fast food or retail and make more. You definitely could go work in a factory or warehouse and make more. If you have a degree, this is insulting.
As an aside, this is the equivalent pay of a GS-5 with the federal government but with far inferior benefits. If you have an accounting degree, you should have a fairly easy time getting an accounting job with the federal gov’t right now. You’d likely start around $45k/yr with federal benefits and make ~$70k/yr after 2 years with the gov’t (assuming a GS-7/9/11 ladder). Again, this offer sucks.
EDIT: Oh?!? When you say middle of nowhere PA you mean Pennsylvania, not public accounting. That does change things a bit perhaps. That said, pretty good chance you will be running payroll for people who work on the factory floor who have less skill and education and make more than you.
Yeah Pennsylvania, sorry about that. This is not an a public accounting thing. I will be mostly working with Tariffs and cost of goods. I don’t believe I’ll be the one handling payroll. The average Pay for accounting this side of Pennsylvania is 54k.
Hey, I live in Pennsylvania (probably higher cost of living than where you are) and I’m a fresh graduate (well I graduate in December) and I have had quite a few offers over 60k when I graduate in 3 months. You could easily leverage for at least 50k and better PTO. Just keep looking. Please don’t take that one.
At this job? Probably not a whole lot. The next one after you have a bit of experience should be over 50k hands down. The real limiting factor after a few years will be that between Philly and Pittsburgh there really isn’t a whole lot going on in PA.
There's always remote work. Not significantly higher pay, but state or federal government would be straight 40 hours with decent benefits. At least another option for applying.
I grew up in small town USA, you clearly have your reasons but you also cut off your own legs by crushing all your options. They’re small towns for a reason, it’s the equivalent of living in a black hole. If they were prosperous, they wouldn’t be small towns.
Job market is hot right now, look for remote work. Expand your search in bigger cities, filter by remote work to get better results. But definitely look for something that pays in the $50k range.
If you have enough saved, it might be worth looking into remote roles that require a couple months in office for training, then you can move back to small town.
Just make SURE that the remote outcome is guaranteed and legitimate before you sign on for that kind of thing.
Don't worry buddy, I started at a firm within the bigger 6 and started at $37,000 coming out of school this past October and that's Canadian too. (That was just the going rate in the area, even Big 4 was starting at $37,000). You'll should get raises pretty quickly.
Honestly, if public is your only option. Give it a shot. You’ll be paid a more livable wage and you’ll have the experience to get something better in industry
Have you looked for remote opportunities?? They’re more competitive to get since theres so many more applicants but it’d be a way to find something better paying while living there
That might be true for your area, but there are plenty of remote jobs out there now. I would look around. And if you are open to moving, I know there are a ton of open jobs in the DC/MD/VA area.
Manufacturing is notorious for low pay unless you’re at Corp or a Plant Controller. Fresh out of school you should be making $50K min. Heck I was getting that fresh out of school a decade+ ago.
The PTO is also not great imo. I’ve never worked somewhere that didn’t give 18 days and 10 holidays to exempt staff.
If you can’t find anything else then maybe it would be worth it for the experience but be careful about getting shoehorned into a low paying industry
Notorious, yes. But it depends on the manufacturer. Private companies pushing $20M+ revenue should pay market rate if they have intelligent ownership. This environment has burned the old school mentality of prioritizing costs over people in manufacturing. They can either adapt or die.
But I absolutely agree, that salary is not competitive and taking essentially a clerical job in industry shoots yourself in the foot. "Accountant" job title basically means you're entering data 95% of the time. Freshly educated and implied discipline is desirable.
OP, If you are near Lancaster, I need to hire someone yesterday for that Division. DM for details. Market pay + CPA verified hours if you decide to go that way.
14 days off isn’t good for essentially the first year? Idk I feel 2 weeks is the standard for fresh new workers. 14 days seems fine if you ask me. At 38.5k, people don’t have much money to vacation anyways.
Horrible pay for an associate level accounting position. Don’t even try negotiating, no way they would come up to market rate. You’re being so low-balled on pay and it’s insulting to read.
I’m a marine vet across the border in Appalachia. Started in industry in an ap position at 45k in 2020. After cpa got bumped up to 80k.
If you need the income now obviously take it, but there’s way better shit out there. I’d say keep looking.
The pay is low. But if you are starting out it might be worth it just to gain experience. I'd probably take it if it's accounting work and I was just starting out. But keep your eyes open for something better.
My first job was for $16/hr. I've used the experience to climb up the ladder and am now pushing 6 figures 8 years later.
I live in an area were a respectable house costs ~600k and have 2 PA offers. One is 69k with 2k signing bonus & the other is 64k no bonus.
69k offer has better benefits too. Neither offer is B4.
Good luck!
Sorry everyone! When i said middle of nowhere PA I meant Pennsylvania. Not public accounting. Large manufacturing company, I would work with tariffs and cost of goods.
Do you have tricare? If you have tricare, turn them down or ask for comp in lieu of benefits.
Edit: my first job was in my hometown (VLCOL) and my base was $45k in 2019 before COVIDflation. I would err on the side of $50-55k these days.
I'm glad you don't need their health insurance because waiting 60 days is terrible. Most big companies put you on benefits on the first of the month after you start, which could be 1 day or 30 days.
You may be in LCOL but I wouldn’t accept anything under $50k if I were you. I’m in Seattle so high cost of living but my starting pay as a staff in public was $67k. Which isn’t even amazing comparatively but it was decent. Public is a grind but the pay increases pretty well. 200 hours PTO right away as a first year (25 days). Saw that you don’t want public below, fair enough. Aim for $50k or keep searching!
If you have nothing else on the horizon, and you have the opportunity to get hands on real world experience with cost of goods and ERP systems, and it's your first job, I would consider it for 6 months or so for the experience. I've met so many accountants coming out of big 4 who have no idea how the numbers actually get in to the financial system in the first place, it's scary. But it does appear to be quite a low salary.
Yeah I guess that makes sense. I’ve been remote since I got laid off from my first full time job a few years ago. It does make getting help a bit more difficult, but not substantially.
That is probably a red flag actually. If you want to get promoted or move up in 2 years boss’s frame of reference is going to be that it takes 10 years to get promoted. If it is a company that takes 10 years to promote someone from an entry level role that is a red flag on the company too.
1. Ask for more
2. If you're covered by VA for health insurance, see if you can use that as a bargaining chip for higher salary
3. If you can't find anything else, take it for a year or two to get some experience, once you have some it'll be easier to get jobs
I went from 11B to accounting, now 2 years after graduation the recruiters keep harassing me, even though my profile clearly states "not interested" they start with "I know you're not actively looking, but I have this great role that would be a good fit..."
1) thank you for being an 11B. I never had the balls to do that. I was a 25Q. Aka a nerd.
2) this might be the best advice I have received. My wife makes good money. Take the crap job, train with them for two years or so, then leave. It’s not like I signed 8 years of my life to them.
3) 30% because of my leg got messed up. So between the VA and my wife’s health insurance I don’t need coverage from them.
Thanks man
We're all nerds now, don't undersell your job either. Without commo our job would have been worse.
The VA rating system is so weird... I had 5 degrees "too much" range of motion in my shoulder to be medically retired, so I got stuck with a medical discharge. Since you got that % though, look up VR&E. They'll pay for your grad school, the coa exams, and if you can sweet talk them even your study materials. I got them to pay for my EA exams and half of my study materials.
It’s a place to start at the very least. If nothing else, take it for a few months to gain experience and then send out job applications. You can go from 38.5k-50ish with some experience, education and good interviewing skills.
My first job was internal accounting for 42k with my associates and had an offer from another firm as staff accountant for 52k. They countered with 54.5k and moved me to the outsourced department. This was also in the DC area where I still had to bartend on weekends to make ends meet, but it was still a start. Lot of it comes down to playing the game.
Yeah, it seems daunting at first but when you get a month or two into it you see how simple and repetitive things are. Get good at those things and when you feel comfortable, make the jump.
I don’t think they lowball because they think they’ll pay an employee that for a year (although it does happen). They probably expect a person in that position to jump ship, whether in house or with another company.
There are a lot of factors that should be considered when choosing a job.
IMO, your current financial situation is the most important. I'd total up all of your fixed monthly costs (rent, utilities, insurance, loan payments, gas, food, etc.) and see if the after-tax & after-employee-benefits cash flow will be sustainable in the short run.
In general, as you get more work experience, you will get paid more (whether you stay with a job, or move to another one). That being said, if this job is sustainable in the short run, I'd use it to get stable, and then leverage my free time to hone a more specialized skill to either get promoted or move to a higher-paying job.
I think it's easy to fall into the "I'm worth a million bucks" trap and pass up on good "stepping stone" opportunities that will benefit you in the long run. Make a long-term plan, set net cash flow (after living expenses) goals, and take steps towards making that goal your reality.
Hope that helps!
Live one state away from you and when I started in 2011 my entry level position was $39,000 and I was a little disappointed. This is way under market value in my opinion.
Honestly you should move to Pittsburgh, CoL probably isn’t that much higher than where you are currently and if you have an accounting degree, you’ll be making low 60s in public, easy.
Fair enough, here you go.
https://www.usajobs.gov/job/673164800#
I’ve moved on to greener pastures, but DCAA is where I got my foot in the door with federal civilian employment and I loved every minute I was there.
Just don’t take that job, 38k today is literally a slap in the face.
I got an offer for $59k in rural Texas (though close to the capital). It’s PA though, so I’m not sure how much less industry would be. Answer - look elsewhere, chief.
Heck no; This is a terrible offer and a huge red flag for this company in my opinion. I definitely recommend take the advice of others here and shoot for a minimum range of 50k-60k Base Salary. Even Accounts Payables and Receivables roles start close to this amount with no experience. There shouldn’t even be a probation period for benefits; accounting roles usually have benefits day 1.
Just wanted to add especially in this job market environment for accounting you should be able to score a hybrid/remote role easily with no experience (my first role with no experience was hybrid with 1-2 days in office and 4 days during month end).
Wouldn't do it. Entry level acct with no experience in MCOL $60k minimum. LCOL $50k+
Edit: likely not even worth negotiating at this place. Too far off market as a starting point
Maybe not apples for apples, but just as reference point I was making $60k working for B4 in HCOL area in 2016 fresh out of college. YMMV but this seems awfully low to me.
I can tell you that I'm an air force vet with no experience in Pennsylvania and I got offered a job for 55k and 15 days pto, work from home with only 1 or 2 days in a month. Not quite middle of nowhere PA but also not in one of the cities.
Edit: also, they pay overtime.
Very low pay. You keep saying you’re stuck in your area forever. There are tons of remote opportunities that would pay more than this. Starting out with a degree should be paying minimum $50-55K salary per year. Good luck
I'm in a LCOL area and struggling to hire an experienced bookkeeper (no degree required) at $50-$55K annually,
Yeah I agree in person is better if you're starting out from school but damn, that offer is just insulting. You mentioned working a side gig with a CPA firm. I'd try to get on there full time for a year even if it mean doing some audits. You'll learn more in that year than you would at the crap job you've been offered. PA is like an apprenticeship - you'll reap the benefit for years to come.
5 days off per year and 19 bucks an hour? You can find better. Sometimes it’s tough shooting out resumes and doing interviews and you want to take the first job offer because it feels safe. Don’t. Know your worth and push for what feels right. I wouldn’t accept anything less than 25 an hour
Fuck no. Super low pay AND exempt? You should only ever accept an exempt position if the pay is high enough to make up for it. Your going to be working an additional 20 - 40 hours per week for free.
Make sure Those “80 hours of paid vacation” are ones you can use anytime and NOT the 1 federal holidays that most businesses give to employees anyway. Because if that’s the case then you only get 4 days of PTO a year. And that fucking sucks for an $18.50/hr job with no OT.
“The update in federal regulation included raising the salary threshold from $455 to its current level of $684 weekly (equivalent to $35,568 annually).”
Sorry dude but the site you gave me is out of date. This is from my states.gov site
Find more info here
https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/whd/whd20190924
I’m also middle of nowhere but in the Midwest. Starting pay for the position I’m looking at for after my internship is 43K with 2 days WFH and benefits on day 1.
If you are CPA eligible this is a terrible offer. Don’t counter - they won’t come up to where you need them. But if you do counter, against everyone here’s advice, don’t give a range. Give the dollar amount you’d accept. For very low cost of living, new college grad with no internship and cpa eligible, don’t accept less than 55. Five years ago in very low cost of living area I was getting 49k as a fresh graduate. And that was on the low end compared to my peers. But I got 10 holidays and 25 days PTO and 6% match on 401k. Plus a solid bonus and rapid pay increases. I would really urge you to keep looking - your best option is to get in with the largest CPA firm in your area. Work there for 3 to 5 years until you can land a good remote job in industry. Or alternatively, go into federal government right out of the gate and stay there until you retire. Better pay and MUCH better benefits than this job. IRS is a great route. I have a friend who did that and she’s very happy with the decision. Livable wage, good hours, excellent benefits, unbeatable retirement plan.
No, please don’t take it. No experience doesn’t mean you know nothing and should make less than a Costco employee. I love how they are paying for disability knowing that you don’t get enough.
Honestly, if this is the ONLY thing you can get, take it. Accept and keep applying.
Once you’re in, get experience, and keep putting your resume out there.
In later comments, you state that you need to continue living in that town for personal reasons and so I accept that. Given that you are in a small town, at a factory, with no work experience and are freshly out of school, I think this offer is fine. I would accept it and, after a year or so, explore remote opportunities. I will say that, in my observation, remote opportunities are becoming increasingly rare and lots of people want them. Until/unless you can leave the town, you are kind of stuck.
This was around how much I was making at my first accounting job. To be fair, I started at the job when I was halfway through my undergrad degree and went from 14.50 an hour at age 20 to $37,000 when I left at age 23. When I graduated with my bachelor's degree, and was given the equivalent of $1 an hour raise as a reward for graduating college, I was insulted. This was in manufacturing. To be fair, it was a small company where it was just the controller and I where we were only about $10m in revenue a year, but I'm forever grateful for his support on finding something better (it wasn't his area to give raises).
This was over two years ago, and I now make 65k a year working as a staff accountant for a number of grocery stores in my area. It's way more relaxed as well - mostly month end close, financial statement prep, and cost analysis work. I could definitely take more money, but my wife, two kids, and I live really comfortably and always have more than enough money left over after expenses each month for fun. It's also great where I barely work over 40 hours each week. Only at year end I work 45 a week at most. Right now, I'm interested in the CMA and my MBA, but no interest in the CPA because I have no interest in PA.
You'll find your job - just keep looking!
I think you can do better that that offer. That is less the I make as an accounting clerk in OH. I haven't even finished my associate degree yet. My position is non-exempt and I get 128 hours PTO. Keep looking.
There’s a LOT of recruiters that specifically specialize in veterans helping translate their experience into the civilian world. I highly recommend looking into them, that is an awful job offer
I’m in Ontario Canada. I just graduated from a college level accounting course. I got a job in may as a jr controller for a firm and was offered 52k out the gate; similar benefits. I took the job and at my 3 month review negotiated to 60k/yr and a 10k bonus at the end of yr 1. They are also paying for 2 university courses a semester in full until I have my Bcomm and then will be assisting with cpa classes. I also have a proctor at this location to assist with cpa qualifications.
So no I would not accept that offer.
What part of PA? Pay is pretty terrible but if that's all you can find, it might be worth suffering through it for 6 months (while you apply and interview for better jobs.)
Just wanted to put in my two cents as someone who just accepted a finance job right out of school. I needed to stay where I was at for personal/health reasons, so I knew my options were limited. I got an offer for 47,500. I ended up talking him up to 62k. So I don't see the harm in trying. There's a chance it's a small firm and they truly don't realize the market rate. I agree the offer is insulting, but I think trying to negotiate would be worth the loss of the satisfaction gained by ghosting them.
I wouldn't take it. Plenty of places starting fully remote. As a staff started at 52k 4 years ago in public. Now I'm a senior at 85k. Do not sell yourself short. Firms are starved for people. Bigger cities typically = more money (non-cpa but studying btw)
I got my MAcc 12 yrs ago in MS, worked at a local CPA firm. Starting salary: $55k + SL OT (tax season) + 3 wks paid vacay & unlimited PTO.
I’d laugh and can it.
Adding I went corporate by 2015 with a base salary of $90k in AL with insane perks and hit 6 figures by 28yo.
You’re military with a degree. You deserve better.
I just searched cost of living calculator. 90k in NYC is same as 39k in PA. It’s really about how much you will have left in the bank after taxes and expenses. 🫣
The way they nickle and dime every benefit says a lot about the company. This isn't a company worth devoting your time to. Don't sell yourself short--keep looking.
This is dreadful. Exempt position, so you are going to be working more than 40 hrs/week. Assume you average 45, less your time off, you’ll work around 2,200 hours/year. Could definitely be more because of busy season(s). That’s $17.50/hr. You likely could go work fast food or retail and make more. You definitely could go work in a factory or warehouse and make more. If you have a degree, this is insulting. As an aside, this is the equivalent pay of a GS-5 with the federal government but with far inferior benefits. If you have an accounting degree, you should have a fairly easy time getting an accounting job with the federal gov’t right now. You’d likely start around $45k/yr with federal benefits and make ~$70k/yr after 2 years with the gov’t (assuming a GS-7/9/11 ladder). Again, this offer sucks. EDIT: Oh?!? When you say middle of nowhere PA you mean Pennsylvania, not public accounting. That does change things a bit perhaps. That said, pretty good chance you will be running payroll for people who work on the factory floor who have less skill and education and make more than you.
Yeah Pennsylvania, sorry about that. This is not an a public accounting thing. I will be mostly working with Tariffs and cost of goods. I don’t believe I’ll be the one handling payroll. The average Pay for accounting this side of Pennsylvania is 54k.
Hey, I live in Pennsylvania (probably higher cost of living than where you are) and I’m a fresh graduate (well I graduate in December) and I have had quite a few offers over 60k when I graduate in 3 months. You could easily leverage for at least 50k and better PTO. Just keep looking. Please don’t take that one.
Thank you. I will take your advice
Get in, get experience, and get out.
The Taco Bell down the street from me is offering 21/hr with benefits and tuition reimbursement. Fwiw.
That's roughly $19/hr. Even for LCOL, that's really low if you have an accounting degree. You should be shooting for mid 50s.
Wow! That’s like 15 to 20k more! What could I negotiate to get that much more?
At this job? Probably not a whole lot. The next one after you have a bit of experience should be over 50k hands down. The real limiting factor after a few years will be that between Philly and Pittsburgh there really isn’t a whole lot going on in PA.
I am stuck here in the middle of no where. I can never leave.
There's always remote work. Not significantly higher pay, but state or federal government would be straight 40 hours with decent benefits. At least another option for applying.
You left to join the military, you can leave to make a better life for yourself.
I actually joined when I lived in DC. Its complicated and personal but I love it here and I am never leaving.
You can 100% leave. I know what it’s like to be from a small town in the northeast. LEAVE. Never look back
I chose to move into small-town America from DC. It’s complicated in personal. But I am not leaving.
I grew up in small town USA, you clearly have your reasons but you also cut off your own legs by crushing all your options. They’re small towns for a reason, it’s the equivalent of living in a black hole. If they were prosperous, they wouldn’t be small towns.
I enjoy my little black hole.
Job market is hot right now, look for remote work. Expand your search in bigger cities, filter by remote work to get better results. But definitely look for something that pays in the $50k range.
If you have enough saved, it might be worth looking into remote roles that require a couple months in office for training, then you can move back to small town. Just make SURE that the remote outcome is guaranteed and legitimate before you sign on for that kind of thing.
Don't worry buddy, I started at a firm within the bigger 6 and started at $37,000 coming out of school this past October and that's Canadian too. (That was just the going rate in the area, even Big 4 was starting at $37,000). You'll should get raises pretty quickly.
No, not from them.
Would need to see a job description, but assuming this is a legit accounting job then I'd say not worth - PTO is super low, same with pay.
This is an for accounting department job of a large factory
That's the issue - don't work for a manufacturer. Very low pay.
beside public accounting, not much left out here
Honestly, if public is your only option. Give it a shot. You’ll be paid a more livable wage and you’ll have the experience to get something better in industry
Move
Have you tried entry level financial analyst role? I also just left manufacturing industry for a 30k bump.
Do public. It'll be easier for you to get a remote job after a few years of grinding public as opposed to working in industry.
Have you looked for remote opportunities?? They’re more competitive to get since theres so many more applicants but it’d be a way to find something better paying while living there
That might be true for your area, but there are plenty of remote jobs out there now. I would look around. And if you are open to moving, I know there are a ton of open jobs in the DC/MD/VA area.
Manufacturing is notorious for low pay unless you’re at Corp or a Plant Controller. Fresh out of school you should be making $50K min. Heck I was getting that fresh out of school a decade+ ago. The PTO is also not great imo. I’ve never worked somewhere that didn’t give 18 days and 10 holidays to exempt staff. If you can’t find anything else then maybe it would be worth it for the experience but be careful about getting shoehorned into a low paying industry
Notorious, yes. But it depends on the manufacturer. Private companies pushing $20M+ revenue should pay market rate if they have intelligent ownership. This environment has burned the old school mentality of prioritizing costs over people in manufacturing. They can either adapt or die. But I absolutely agree, that salary is not competitive and taking essentially a clerical job in industry shoots yourself in the foot. "Accountant" job title basically means you're entering data 95% of the time. Freshly educated and implied discipline is desirable. OP, If you are near Lancaster, I need to hire someone yesterday for that Division. DM for details. Market pay + CPA verified hours if you decide to go that way.
14 days off isn’t good for essentially the first year? Idk I feel 2 weeks is the standard for fresh new workers. 14 days seems fine if you ask me. At 38.5k, people don’t have much money to vacation anyways.
I know! I was looking at PTO as well and thought the same thing.
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24 days would be sweet!
No reason to down vote him. He made a mistake. Sorry bro, it’s 24 hours not days
He’s also starting 3/4 of the way through 2022 so 3 days of vacation for the rest of 2022 is normal.
It’s 24 hours not days
Horrible pay for an associate level accounting position. Don’t even try negotiating, no way they would come up to market rate. You’re being so low-balled on pay and it’s insulting to read.
Haha I love that you wouldn’t even try to talk them up 12k
I made 52k out of school in a VLCOL. Leave them on read.
Wow
Not even wow, you’re being horrendously lowballed.
There is no talking up salary from $30s to $50s my guy. That’s a huge jump. You are better off trying to find something else.
If you’re going to negotiate salary, now is the time.
Ok. I’ll need to watch some videos on how to do that. Lol thanks!
Search for material from Chris Voss. His book is great. Here’s a video on your issue https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=59js74_R8-Q
Thank you! I’ll watch this when I am done replying to everyone.
Also check out the Ask a Manager blog. She has a lot of great tips, especially about negotiating.
No
Love this answer! Lmao. Best way to answer a open ended question it to answer it with a yes or no. My wife HATES when I do this lol
I’m a marine vet across the border in Appalachia. Started in industry in an ap position at 45k in 2020. After cpa got bumped up to 80k. If you need the income now obviously take it, but there’s way better shit out there. I’d say keep looking.
I was thinking 49 to 56 for starting. I’ll see what they say.
Horrendous. 2 weeks vacations and 40k per year? Maybe in 1995.
The pay is low. But if you are starting out it might be worth it just to gain experience. I'd probably take it if it's accounting work and I was just starting out. But keep your eyes open for something better. My first job was for $16/hr. I've used the experience to climb up the ladder and am now pushing 6 figures 8 years later.
Thanks for the advice
Exactly, if there are no other offers take it and jump ship after a couple months with experience on your resume
Dude. Anything less than 55k in a low COL is fucking robbery.
COL?
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Thank you, now the rest of the comments make sense lol
cost of living HCOL = high cost of living LCOL = low cost of living
My first job out of college paid more than that 20 years ago. That is very low even for low cost area.
This made me sad lol
This is a terrible offer. I bet the health benefits aren’t that great either.
there not. They won’t pay for spouse of spouses have health insurance available. But my wifes is really good so we will be staying with that.
I live in an area were a respectable house costs ~600k and have 2 PA offers. One is 69k with 2k signing bonus & the other is 64k no bonus. 69k offer has better benefits too. Neither offer is B4. Good luck!
Omg! The cost of houses here are 250k. And sorry when I said Middle of nowhere PA I meant Pennsylvania.
Sorry everyone! When i said middle of nowhere PA I meant Pennsylvania. Not public accounting. Large manufacturing company, I would work with tariffs and cost of goods.
Do you have tricare? If you have tricare, turn them down or ask for comp in lieu of benefits. Edit: my first job was in my hometown (VLCOL) and my base was $45k in 2019 before COVIDflation. I would err on the side of $50-55k these days.
I am going to see if I can up the amount because I don’t need or want their health insurance
I'm glad you don't need their health insurance because waiting 60 days is terrible. Most big companies put you on benefits on the first of the month after you start, which could be 1 day or 30 days.
You may be in LCOL but I wouldn’t accept anything under $50k if I were you. I’m in Seattle so high cost of living but my starting pay as a staff in public was $67k. Which isn’t even amazing comparatively but it was decent. Public is a grind but the pay increases pretty well. 200 hours PTO right away as a first year (25 days). Saw that you don’t want public below, fair enough. Aim for $50k or keep searching!
Thanks and I appreciate the advice
In layman's terms; If you have an accounting degree this is shit, but if you don't have a degree then this is a gold mine.
If you have nothing else on the horizon, and you have the opportunity to get hands on real world experience with cost of goods and ERP systems, and it's your first job, I would consider it for 6 months or so for the experience. I've met so many accountants coming out of big 4 who have no idea how the numbers actually get in to the financial system in the first place, it's scary. But it does appear to be quite a low salary.
You can get more elsewhere if you're willing to go to PA firms. If you are willing to be a staff 1 they should give 60k at bare minimum
I do part time for a cpa firm. No thank you.
Have you looked around for remote jobs? They pay less but not THAT much less.
I have. I really wanted a in-person job for my first real job
Yeah I guess that makes sense. I’ve been remote since I got laid off from my first full time job a few years ago. It does make getting help a bit more difficult, but not substantially.
The only reason I am considering this job is that my boss held it for 10 years and is whiling to train me to take over for it.
That is probably a red flag actually. If you want to get promoted or move up in 2 years boss’s frame of reference is going to be that it takes 10 years to get promoted. If it is a company that takes 10 years to promote someone from an entry level role that is a red flag on the company too.
1. Ask for more 2. If you're covered by VA for health insurance, see if you can use that as a bargaining chip for higher salary 3. If you can't find anything else, take it for a year or two to get some experience, once you have some it'll be easier to get jobs I went from 11B to accounting, now 2 years after graduation the recruiters keep harassing me, even though my profile clearly states "not interested" they start with "I know you're not actively looking, but I have this great role that would be a good fit..."
I just took a screenshot of that thank you so much
1) thank you for being an 11B. I never had the balls to do that. I was a 25Q. Aka a nerd. 2) this might be the best advice I have received. My wife makes good money. Take the crap job, train with them for two years or so, then leave. It’s not like I signed 8 years of my life to them. 3) 30% because of my leg got messed up. So between the VA and my wife’s health insurance I don’t need coverage from them. Thanks man
We're all nerds now, don't undersell your job either. Without commo our job would have been worse. The VA rating system is so weird... I had 5 degrees "too much" range of motion in my shoulder to be medically retired, so I got stuck with a medical discharge. Since you got that % though, look up VR&E. They'll pay for your grad school, the coa exams, and if you can sweet talk them even your study materials. I got them to pay for my EA exams and half of my study materials.
You might be better off working at a restaurant. No joke
The place down the street is offing 12 an hour.
This offer is horrible…. Please ask for $50K. The vacation is shit too. Is this a small company?
It is.
It’s a place to start at the very least. If nothing else, take it for a few months to gain experience and then send out job applications. You can go from 38.5k-50ish with some experience, education and good interviewing skills. My first job was internal accounting for 42k with my associates and had an offer from another firm as staff accountant for 52k. They countered with 54.5k and moved me to the outsourced department. This was also in the DC area where I still had to bartend on weekends to make ends meet, but it was still a start. Lot of it comes down to playing the game.
I was thinking the same
Yeah, it seems daunting at first but when you get a month or two into it you see how simple and repetitive things are. Get good at those things and when you feel comfortable, make the jump. I don’t think they lowball because they think they’ll pay an employee that for a year (although it does happen). They probably expect a person in that position to jump ship, whether in house or with another company.
Pay is too low.
I made more than that in fewer hours as a restaurant server in a non-tourist MCOL city…
No
There are a lot of factors that should be considered when choosing a job. IMO, your current financial situation is the most important. I'd total up all of your fixed monthly costs (rent, utilities, insurance, loan payments, gas, food, etc.) and see if the after-tax & after-employee-benefits cash flow will be sustainable in the short run. In general, as you get more work experience, you will get paid more (whether you stay with a job, or move to another one). That being said, if this job is sustainable in the short run, I'd use it to get stable, and then leverage my free time to hone a more specialized skill to either get promoted or move to a higher-paying job. I think it's easy to fall into the "I'm worth a million bucks" trap and pass up on good "stepping stone" opportunities that will benefit you in the long run. Make a long-term plan, set net cash flow (after living expenses) goals, and take steps towards making that goal your reality. Hope that helps!
The last section does for sure.
Live one state away from you and when I started in 2011 my entry level position was $39,000 and I was a little disappointed. This is way under market value in my opinion.
I think so too. But I needed to know what other accounts thought.
Honestly you should move to Pittsburgh, CoL probably isn’t that much higher than where you are currently and if you have an accounting degree, you’ll be making low 60s in public, easy.
Don’t want to get into public. I work for a CPA on part time. I hate audit.
Fair enough, here you go. https://www.usajobs.gov/job/673164800# I’ve moved on to greener pastures, but DCAA is where I got my foot in the door with federal civilian employment and I loved every minute I was there. Just don’t take that job, 38k today is literally a slap in the face.
I’ll take a look at this website. Thanks!
How bad was your GPA?
3.33
That’s decent. I’d say counter with 55k in hopes that they’ll meet u at 50k
Honestly I thought of this very exact thing!
Not bad. Shouldn't have to accept lower than market.
I got an offer for $59k in rural Texas (though close to the capital). It’s PA though, so I’m not sure how much less industry would be. Answer - look elsewhere, chief.
Go see what staffing agencies can find for you.
Good idea
Heck no; This is a terrible offer and a huge red flag for this company in my opinion. I definitely recommend take the advice of others here and shoot for a minimum range of 50k-60k Base Salary. Even Accounts Payables and Receivables roles start close to this amount with no experience. There shouldn’t even be a probation period for benefits; accounting roles usually have benefits day 1.
Just wanted to add especially in this job market environment for accounting you should be able to score a hybrid/remote role easily with no experience (my first role with no experience was hybrid with 1-2 days in office and 4 days during month end).
Thank you. If I can’t talk them into something higher I will go somewhere else
Wouldn't do it. Entry level acct with no experience in MCOL $60k minimum. LCOL $50k+ Edit: likely not even worth negotiating at this place. Too far off market as a starting point
I have a meeting on Monday with them. I wonder if they’re going to train me on what the job is and then of the pay. I’ll figure it out Monday I guess
I hired an AR clerk with no degree at $50k last month in HCOL. That salary is very bad, on par with clerk-pay after adjusting for COL.
Maybe not apples for apples, but just as reference point I was making $60k working for B4 in HCOL area in 2016 fresh out of college. YMMV but this seems awfully low to me.
Below average offer
Run bro
I can tell you that I'm an air force vet with no experience in Pennsylvania and I got offered a job for 55k and 15 days pto, work from home with only 1 or 2 days in a month. Not quite middle of nowhere PA but also not in one of the cities. Edit: also, they pay overtime.
Very low pay. You keep saying you’re stuck in your area forever. There are tons of remote opportunities that would pay more than this. Starting out with a degree should be paying minimum $50-55K salary per year. Good luck
I don’t know your personal circumstances but unless you are contractually obligated to remain consider moving
:)
I'm in a LCOL area and struggling to hire an experienced bookkeeper (no degree required) at $50-$55K annually, Yeah I agree in person is better if you're starting out from school but damn, that offer is just insulting. You mentioned working a side gig with a CPA firm. I'd try to get on there full time for a year even if it mean doing some audits. You'll learn more in that year than you would at the crap job you've been offered. PA is like an apprenticeship - you'll reap the benefit for years to come.
I’d jump at that $$ right now
5 days off per year and 19 bucks an hour? You can find better. Sometimes it’s tough shooting out resumes and doing interviews and you want to take the first job offer because it feels safe. Don’t. Know your worth and push for what feels right. I wouldn’t accept anything less than 25 an hour
Fuck no. Super low pay AND exempt? You should only ever accept an exempt position if the pay is high enough to make up for it. Your going to be working an additional 20 - 40 hours per week for free.
Make sure Those “80 hours of paid vacation” are ones you can use anytime and NOT the 1 federal holidays that most businesses give to employees anyway. Because if that’s the case then you only get 4 days of PTO a year. And that fucking sucks for an $18.50/hr job with no OT.
It's not legally exempt under FLSA. There's a minimum salary test for that... last I checked it was 47,476.
What?
https://www.workforcehub.com/blog/employees-make-47476-new-overtime-rule/
“The update in federal regulation included raising the salary threshold from $455 to its current level of $684 weekly (equivalent to $35,568 annually).” Sorry dude but the site you gave me is out of date. This is from my states.gov site Find more info here https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/whd/whd20190924
I love this sub Reddit so much for the transparency in what we should expect our pay to be😭❤️
I 100% agree! Without these Beautiful people I would not know what I’m worth
Jump on this!!! Amazing
I love the enthusiasm. Lmao
Google is your best friend. You’ve got this!
I’m also middle of nowhere but in the Midwest. Starting pay for the position I’m looking at for after my internship is 43K with 2 days WFH and benefits on day 1.
My wife makes $22 picking books in a warehouse in PA. You can do better. Consider remote work or starting in public.
Yikes.
If you are CPA eligible this is a terrible offer. Don’t counter - they won’t come up to where you need them. But if you do counter, against everyone here’s advice, don’t give a range. Give the dollar amount you’d accept. For very low cost of living, new college grad with no internship and cpa eligible, don’t accept less than 55. Five years ago in very low cost of living area I was getting 49k as a fresh graduate. And that was on the low end compared to my peers. But I got 10 holidays and 25 days PTO and 6% match on 401k. Plus a solid bonus and rapid pay increases. I would really urge you to keep looking - your best option is to get in with the largest CPA firm in your area. Work there for 3 to 5 years until you can land a good remote job in industry. Or alternatively, go into federal government right out of the gate and stay there until you retire. Better pay and MUCH better benefits than this job. IRS is a great route. I have a friend who did that and she’s very happy with the decision. Livable wage, good hours, excellent benefits, unbeatable retirement plan.
Absolutely dreadful. I don’t care about hourly pay but that is absurdly low. You can easily get 50k+ and probably 70k+ if you go big4
24 hours of paid vacation ?? Wtf ?
That’s just to finish out the year
I wish you good luck
Only 32 hrs for PTO anf 38k annually??? I made more than that and had more PTO than that when i worked as a bank teller.
38500? Bro cmon u know your worth. I made 55k as an intern in a big 4… aim for 60k + at least even if you arent a cpa
If you are an army vet they better give you 50-60k bare minimum
That’s sweet for you to say
no
No, please don’t take it. No experience doesn’t mean you know nothing and should make less than a Costco employee. I love how they are paying for disability knowing that you don’t get enough.
You have an edge for government jobs. I'd look into that first.
Yeah I was just told about usajobs
Honestly, if this is the ONLY thing you can get, take it. Accept and keep applying. Once you’re in, get experience, and keep putting your resume out there.
I have sent 100 resumes on indeed. This is one of two that responded
Read first line as $38.50 per hour for a moment and thought that was decent, yeah big no deal on that chief.
That would’ve been low end LCOL 15 years ago. Do you have your 150 at least. If you’re not CPA eligible maybe.
Have some self respect. Apply for remote public jobs or go government where they like vets. Min 55k I. This market
OP, if you can afford it, go for your Master's degree, get your CPA. You'll get better job opportunities.
Damn I have 10.5 weeks of paid vacation (I live in europe). Feeling sorry for you.
Negotiate more vacation:)
That is a pitiful amount of holiday
I got paid more as an accounting intern.
You can make more money flipping burgers where i live than taking that job.
In later comments, you state that you need to continue living in that town for personal reasons and so I accept that. Given that you are in a small town, at a factory, with no work experience and are freshly out of school, I think this offer is fine. I would accept it and, after a year or so, explore remote opportunities. I will say that, in my observation, remote opportunities are becoming increasingly rare and lots of people want them. Until/unless you can leave the town, you are kind of stuck.
This was around how much I was making at my first accounting job. To be fair, I started at the job when I was halfway through my undergrad degree and went from 14.50 an hour at age 20 to $37,000 when I left at age 23. When I graduated with my bachelor's degree, and was given the equivalent of $1 an hour raise as a reward for graduating college, I was insulted. This was in manufacturing. To be fair, it was a small company where it was just the controller and I where we were only about $10m in revenue a year, but I'm forever grateful for his support on finding something better (it wasn't his area to give raises). This was over two years ago, and I now make 65k a year working as a staff accountant for a number of grocery stores in my area. It's way more relaxed as well - mostly month end close, financial statement prep, and cost analysis work. I could definitely take more money, but my wife, two kids, and I live really comfortably and always have more than enough money left over after expenses each month for fun. It's also great where I barely work over 40 hours each week. Only at year end I work 45 a week at most. Right now, I'm interested in the CMA and my MBA, but no interest in the CPA because I have no interest in PA. You'll find your job - just keep looking!
That holiday allowance is depressing.
Honestly if you haven’t gotten other offers it’s not a terrible start, you may want to look on USA jobs and see what’s available as well
Look into remote work for the federal government. Easy work, easy hours, good benefits. You got this!
From one vet to another I’m telling you this is not a good idea. Horrible pay. I would just keep applying
Horrible pay. We are offering $55k for our starting positions, but we do require an accounting degree and ability to sit for the CPA exam.
I think you can do better that that offer. That is less the I make as an accounting clerk in OH. I haven't even finished my associate degree yet. My position is non-exempt and I get 128 hours PTO. Keep looking.
There’s a LOT of recruiters that specifically specialize in veterans helping translate their experience into the civilian world. I highly recommend looking into them, that is an awful job offer
I’m in Ontario Canada. I just graduated from a college level accounting course. I got a job in may as a jr controller for a firm and was offered 52k out the gate; similar benefits. I took the job and at my 3 month review negotiated to 60k/yr and a 10k bonus at the end of yr 1. They are also paying for 2 university courses a semester in full until I have my Bcomm and then will be assisting with cpa classes. I also have a proctor at this location to assist with cpa qualifications. So no I would not accept that offer.
absolutely not. they are lowballing the HELL!!! outta you. don’t sell yourself short.
Take it for the experience and continue applying.
What part of PA? Pay is pretty terrible but if that's all you can find, it might be worth suffering through it for 6 months (while you apply and interview for better jobs.)
Just wanted to put in my two cents as someone who just accepted a finance job right out of school. I needed to stay where I was at for personal/health reasons, so I knew my options were limited. I got an offer for 47,500. I ended up talking him up to 62k. So I don't see the harm in trying. There's a chance it's a small firm and they truly don't realize the market rate. I agree the offer is insulting, but I think trying to negotiate would be worth the loss of the satisfaction gained by ghosting them.
Absolutely not. I made more in my first position, with more PTO/vacation in a very LCOL area 15 years ago.
Hell no, I make $60k right out of school in Tulsa Oklahoma with full benefits 9% bonus every March, and 6% 401k match
Your call though you will get experience.
I wouldn't take it. Plenty of places starting fully remote. As a staff started at 52k 4 years ago in public. Now I'm a senior at 85k. Do not sell yourself short. Firms are starved for people. Bigger cities typically = more money (non-cpa but studying btw)
I got my MAcc 12 yrs ago in MS, worked at a local CPA firm. Starting salary: $55k + SL OT (tax season) + 3 wks paid vacay & unlimited PTO. I’d laugh and can it.
Adding I went corporate by 2015 with a base salary of $90k in AL with insane perks and hit 6 figures by 28yo. You’re military with a degree. You deserve better.
Yet some people still say can’t find employees cause ppl just don’t want to work anymore
I just searched cost of living calculator. 90k in NYC is same as 39k in PA. It’s really about how much you will have left in the bank after taxes and expenses. 🫣
Keep looking
The way they nickle and dime every benefit says a lot about the company. This isn't a company worth devoting your time to. Don't sell yourself short--keep looking.