Raise? Or Bonus?

User avatar
RIZZY
Duchess
Duchess
Posts: 1151
Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2022 3:52 pm

Unread post

I am a salaried employee. On top of my regular duties, my boss recently asked me to start and manage our social media. It would not be a lot of work for now because he only wants 2-3 posts per month across 2-3 apps. In the future, the workload might increase.

He offered to pay me for these tasks as part of an overall raise. Or, I can get paid with bi monthly bonuses.

I have already looked up the pros and cons. It seems like it would not make much of a difference in my taxes. Unless something devastating happens, I am not moving companies any time soon so I'm not worried about salary negotiation with other companies.

The only thing I am not sure of is how this would affect my raises and yearly bonuses with my current company. If I accept the compensation as part of my base salary, do I negotiate future raises based on the whole salary? Or negotiate each "job" separately? If he decides to ramp up social media, I will have a steep learning curve and should be compensated fairly.

What are your thoughts? Is there anything I'm not thinking of?
User avatar
MonarchMom
Princess Royal
Princess Royal
Posts: 5731
Joined: Sat May 26, 2018 8:52 pm

Unread post

I would say take it as a raise, that would mean your base pay is higher regardless if this new task stays small, or is handed off to someone else in the future. If there are any 401K, pension or other benefits having them calculated on a higher base salary is better for you.

If this develops into a larger part of your job you should see how people in social media marketing are compensated and negotiate for more money. You might also request the company pay for classes to keep up with changes in social media.
cgd5112
Donated
Donated
Regent
Regent
Posts: 2091
Joined: Mon May 21, 2018 6:18 pm
Location: Northeast

Unread post

I don't think there is a clear answer here. However, if you decide to go the raise route, I would have the job description reflect social media duties/management. even though you may not leave any time soon, this may give you an edge in salary negotiations elsewhere given the additional qualifications - especially if you ever consider going remote.

Also, there raise should be more than the standard raise. In other words, is your raise the same as if you did not have to manage the social media area? If so, I would look at the duties you currently have and see where you can offload those to another coworker within weeks of you taking over the social media area- especially if it will only increase. If it is significantly higher than the standard, ask or figure out if the raise is based on projected workload increase in social media management.

If the world increases, you may be able to segway into this position more than 50%. That is something you will have to figure out and again have someone else take over more of the duties of your current position to keep the workload fair for the salary you'll receive.
PrincessLaLa
Duchess
Duchess
Posts: 1895
Joined: Mon Nov 30, 2020 11:26 pm
Location: LaLa Land

Unread post

I would choose the raise. That way if you, for example, typically get a 10% raise annually, it will be 10% of a larger number.
User avatar
carterscutie85
Princess
Princess
Posts: 11958
Joined: Mon May 21, 2018 10:19 am

Unread post

They tax the shit out of bonuses here. Like 30%. So keep that in mind.
User avatar
RIZZY
Duchess
Duchess
Posts: 1151
Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2022 3:52 pm

Unread post

carterscutie85 wrote: Tue Aug 02, 2022 3:57 pm They tax the shit out of bonuses here. Like 30%. So keep that in mind.
Oy. I just read two conflicting articles about it. That pretty much settles it. Don't wanna take the chance.
Traci_Momof2
Princess
Princess
Posts: 11091
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 12:32 am
Location: Southwest USA

Unread post

RIZZY wrote: Tue Aug 02, 2022 4:02 pm
carterscutie85 wrote: Tue Aug 02, 2022 3:57 pm They tax the shit out of bonuses here. Like 30%. So keep that in mind.
Oy. I just read two conflicting articles about it. That pretty much settles it. Don't wanna take the chance.
Here's my understanding of bonuses and taxes. On your IRS income tax return, bonuses go on the same line item as salaries and wages. So you are only taxed more if your bonus amount bumps you into the next tax bracket. But one person with $30K salary and $5k in bonuses vs another person with $35K salary - they are both going to be taxed on $35K income at the tax bracket that $35K puts you in.

Where people talk about high taxes on bonuses I believe is more so in how it's withheld from your paycheck. So say you are paid once every 2 weeks, and your normal gross pay is $2K for the 2 weeks. Well the payroll software looks at that as an annual pay of $52K and withholds based on $52K/year with your W4 inputs. But now say on one paycheck you get a $1,500 bonus in addition to your $2K salary. Now the software is seeing $3,500 for two weeks which it thinks of as an annual salary of $91K and it will withhold accordingly, ie. higher tax bracket so higher tax rate. In short, it withholds a lot more because it thinks you are making more throughout the year.
But at the end of the year when filing your taxes, your total income is still your total income and if too much was withheld because of bonuses, then you will just owe less in taxes or get a bigger refund when you file. Hope that all makes sense.

All that being said, personally I would rather just have it as a salary raise. A set salary seems more steady and reliable rather than a bonus that can increase/decrease each time. My DH gets a base salary with bonuses and anytime I try to create a budget in a spreadsheet it annoys the crap out of me because I feel like I don't know what his monthly income is - it changes with the bonuses.
User avatar
mojogirl
Donated
Donated
Regent
Regent
Posts: 3543
Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2018 3:20 pm

Unread post

Depending on the actual numbers, I vote raise. In my state, bonuses are taxes at 25%. If you haven't already, check how it will be taxed and crunch the numbers.
User avatar
Gorilla_Mama
Regent
Regent
Posts: 3993
Joined: Tue May 22, 2018 11:46 am

Unread post

I’d take the raise. Bonuses sound good but they aren’t guaranteed.
hotspice58
Regent
Regent
Posts: 3505
Joined: Thu Jun 28, 2018 10:56 am

Unread post

At my current job, bonuses are taxed at 45%. 2 jobs ago, bonuses weren’t taxed. A raise gives you more stability.
Locked Previous topicNext topic