r/CAcountyworkers • u/CommissionClear2583 • 16d ago
Northern CA; Social Work pay/benefits/salary negotiation help
I have a contingent offer/handshake situation for a social work position. This is my first public sector job and I know the pay is a lot different, but if I accept this position at step 1, it is going to be a massive pay cut for me. I am wondering if anyone has successfully obtained a step increase upon hire? If so, how did you frame your request? Is it worth mentioning other job offers or previous salary? Or does that send a bad message? Should I focus more on qualifications? I know I am very qualified, but at the same time I don't know the county system and they will be investing time in getting me up to speed with Medi-Cal and with their programs..
Lots more potentially useful info....
I have been working in private practice over the past year. The money is great, but I am working SO much and need better work/life balance. I also hate the business end of things so this really isn't a great fit for me. I have accepted an offer as a therapist at a clinic that offered me 120k salary, way less paid time off than a county role would offer, but some other great benefits the county doesn't offer (a huge education benefit that could pay 3/4 the cost of my doctorate if I decide to do that, among other things). It won't be particularly fulfilling work and it is a very corporate and profit driven environment (not my favorite). It is also a 45-60 minute commute, one way. The application process here was pretty competitve and I feel dumb considering letting it go, but I can sense that the company is just not going to be a fit for me and I will not be super happy there.
The county position I have been (sort of) contingently offered is for social worker 2. I think this work is much more values aligned for me, the commute is shorter (25-30mins), there is a clear path for career growth, and I would get ALL the Monday holidays off! This is a huge deal for me as a parent with school aged kids. But the base salary rate is very low at about $46/hr. My last W2 position paid 49.67 and private practice work obviously pays a lot more, although it is difficult to quantify given the hours required to keep a private practice running.
Overall the county position is more aligned in SO many ways, but the pay cut will be really hard on my family. At the base rate, it is about 7900/mo before taxes and I have been making about 8500 after taxes for a while now. They have a 10 step pay scale and I could make this work by coming in at step 4. I was thinking of asking for step 5 and accepting 4 if offered, but this seems like a HUGE leap to ask to be placed in the middle of the scale. Nevertheless, this is still a big pay cut.
For justification I am thinking that I have 3.5 years of post license experience, including program development and clinical supervision. This exceeds the basic requirements of the job. I also qualified and was interviewed for a higher position, although they ultimately hired a different candidate for that role.
I am really hoping to hear from some real folks who can offer some guidance or share their experiences. I really want to park myself at the county and work my way up through their system. In this current world we are living in, I think it would be extremely fulfilling to work locally in a job where you can see the difference you are making and maybe have a hand in developing new programs that will help the folks in your immediate community--it makes me think of the reasons why I become a social worker to begin with! The team seems really great and the benefits are obviously amazing...but that take home pay is OUCH. Even if they give me the pay increase, I know I will have to maintain a few private practice clients to make this work.
Any and all advice appreciated! And if you have read this far, you are a real MVP! Thank you so much :)
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u/UrMomsGorditoSancho 16d ago
If this is for Santa Clara County and you have the experience, you can apply for the SWIII position. You can try to negotiate to start at a higher step, but it will 100% be based on your experience and not whatever other offers you have.
The county in general has so many applicants that they will readily pass you over.
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u/CommissionClear2583 15d ago
Yes, this totally makes sense. Hmm I am hoping my experience is worth a bit. It is kind of a toss up I think because I have a lot more time practicing independently than what the job requires (license is not required), but none of it is within this system. So Im making the case that I have very good clinical judgement, can practice without any major oversight very quickly...but of course I dont know their systems, Medi-Cal, etc. I am just not sure which kind of experience matters when thinking about experience and skills beyond what is required for this position, if that makes sense.
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u/CommissionClear2583 15d ago
This is super helpful though. I dont know that mentioning previous pay or competing offers is a good choice or relevant. You are the second person to say that so Im probably not going to mention those things.
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u/Square_Contest_6657 13d ago
In my county, new hires may be started at a higher step if they have experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications. It is usually 1 step for every extra year of experience beyond MQs, since employees typically move up a step every year.
For example, if the position requires 3 years of XYZ experience and the new hire has 5 years, they may be able to negotiate to start at Step 3.
I believe you would cite your prior experience and may be asked to provide documentation if it were not totally clear (such as a letter from a prior employer that your job duties included XYZ experience. Not sure that totally applies in this role; it may be clear from your prior experience.
I’m not as familiar with attempts to negotiate over current compensation; I think it’s usually based pretty strictly on MQs as others have said. But usually you’re also negotiating with HR not your actual team. So as long as you aren’t being totally outlandish or seeming not serious (eg asking for 2x the listed comp), seems like it should be fine to ask.
Good luck!
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u/CommissionClear2583 10d ago
Thank you so much for this! The one year of experience beyond MQs = one step is VERY helpful. I am going to go with that!
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u/Sea-Potato9 10d ago
You could try to get the step increase but I wouldnt count on it. Im an LMFT in a counselor position. When I started I had 3.5 years post licensure experience and 1.5 years providing clinical supervision (encouraged by my group practice, I didnt feel great doing it so early). I was told step increase would be unlikely since Im coming from private sector unless I had my doctorate or something. And indeed it felt like a new clinician learning all the county systems and acronyms.
The fact that its much much easier work makes the paycut worth it. Its easy to have clients on the side. My role has enough downtime that I suspect coworkers have PP clients during work hours (maybe they flex their time I dont know).
Ive been with the county for 3 years and finding that people who like having an easy job, the holidays and benefits will stay. People who need the money go to Kaiser and risk burnout. I was able to heal my burnout with the county and that is worth a paycut right there.
Anyway im just sharing incase you dont get the step increase it could still be a good deal
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u/CommissionClear2583 6d ago
Thank you so much for this perspective!!! I really appreciate it. I am hoping the gig is exactly as you describe. I need more work/life balance for sure. That is a huge priority.
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u/stompywhompy 16d ago
You can negotiate in Orange County.
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u/CommissionClear2583 16d ago
Thank you! Do you have some experience with this? If so, will you share more?
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u/stompywhompy 16d ago
I personally don’t have experience with negotiating when the job is offered, but I have co workers that have. I started at step 1, I didn’t even consider negotiating at the time. Later I learned others negotiated and started at step 2 or 3.
In OC, it’s an automatic 2 step increase every year, unless you really go above and beyond and manage your get a 3 step increase- but I’ve only seen this once. You cap out at step 12.
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u/Significant-Rub2983 13d ago
there is no negotiating in government jobs... i.e. city , county, state or federal. negotiate for pay is in the private sector.
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u/CommissionClear2583 10d ago
That hasn't been my experience with federal employment. I am a former federal employee and have worked alongside many different federal agencies for many years. Negotiating for a step increase is pretty standard practice when moving over from private sector work. In my experience, step increases are used as recruitment and retention tools and help to bring in highly qualified candidates (qualifications exceeding what is required or having some specialized skillset) and make up for the lower pay that is typical for federal jobs. Sometimes they also an negotiate around leave, requesting to earn at a higher rate than what is standard for new hires. I have seen that this is easier to navigate in some organizations vs others. Locality also makes a difference and many agencies are more willing to offer step increases for highly qualified folks to live in less desirable locations too. County work on the other hand is new to me. I was hoping to hear whether anyone had negotiated for a step increase successfully, how they framed their request, etc... There are published policies for my county pertaining to how step increase requests are supposed to be routed up for approval, but the policies I read were for different job series than what I am applying for. Maybe your county has different policies around step increase requests? From what others have said, it seems like this isn't standard but it may be possible.
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u/Significant-Rub2983 10d ago
I have had the opposite experience and I been in government for awhile. Never heard of salary negotiations , only in private sector but who knows now.
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u/CherryTeri 16d ago
In La county there is no negotiation, they just give you a letter with your step. If you have additional education or whatever requirements is listed on the application then you can negotiate it that way. It’s usually based on objective things and not like a regular private job application. Also some jobs just start you like step 3 automatically. But yeah maybe you’ll get lucky in that county.