What to do when your pay rise request is rejected

Every workplace and manager is different, and there may be more than one reason behind a no. These are the most common ones, and each can be worked on.

Timing matters. If you know the business is going through a tough financial period, a pay rise request can come across as not understanding the context. Employers tend to reward people who show they understand the business as well as people who perform well.

Your manager's workload counts too. If they're swamped, asking them to get approval to pay you more won't go down well, and they're less likely to be open to it. Your recent track record matters as well, because missing targets or making big mistakes just before you ask makes it a poor moment. If the timing was off, hold fire until the situation improves. Our guide on pay rise mistakes to avoid covers how to pick a better moment.

Performance is usually the first thing a manager checks. Missing clearly defined targets is an easy reason to say no, and so is making a run of serious mistakes. Some managers also look at whether you contribute to the wider team, such as helping others and adding to a good team atmosphere, or whether you do the bare minimum. That last one is harder to measure, but it can still sway a decision.

Managers are human, and personal opinions can cloud judgement. If you've clashed in the past, it may hurt your chances, even though it shouldn't.

Some managers say you're paid well compared with the rest of the team. It sounds final, but it's one of the easier objections to deal with, and we cover how below. Sometimes the real reason is budget, because your manager may support the raise but not control the money.

These steps work for most of the reasons above.

• Ask why. This is the most important step, because without the reason you can't improve your chances next time. Ask in a non-confrontational way. You're not challenging the decision, you're looking for feedback you can use, and asking for "feedback" tends to go over better than asking why you were rejected.
• Find out what more you could do. If the reason is performance, ask what objectives you're measured against. In a sales role, for example, it might be closing a set number of deals a month. If it's about your contribution to the team, ask what you can do to improve. This helps tick the box you're missing and shows you care.
• Learn how pay is set in your organisation. If your manager says your pay has been benchmarked against similar roles or against others in the business, ask how. If you still feel you should earn more, do your own research, using our salary guide or a recruiter who knows your industry, and reopen the conversation constructively.
• Agree a date to come back to it. Ask when it would be fair to revisit the discussion and what you'd like to have shown by then. Putting a review date in writing is a practical way to keep the door open.
• Keep doing good work. It's not a good motivator, especially if you believe you're worth more. But checking out or putting in less effort will be noticed and will hurt your chances of a rise later.

If the rejection was based on the idea that you're paid well compared with colleagues, steer the conversation away from comparisons and towards what you bring. Point to specific projects you've delivered and results you've achieved. In a hands-on role, that might be jobs completed ahead of schedule, a safety record, a licence or ticket you've added, or the number of people you've trained on the team.

Yes. An employer has no legal obligation to review pay or give a raise unless it's in your employment agreement, and they can review pay and decide not to increase it as long as it meets the minimum wage. If you ask for a rise, they must consider and respond to your request in good faith.

What an employer can't do is pay people differently based on things like gender, ethnicity, age or disability, according to the same page. If you think a gap between you and a colleague comes down to something like that, talk to Employment New Zealand. You're also free to compare notes with colleagues, and employers can't take adverse action against you for discussing your pay.

If you've asked for feedback, worked on it and made your case, and there's still no path to a rise, you have options. You can ask about other forms of reward, such as extra annual leave, training, a licence or ticket paid for, flexible hours or an allowance. You can also see what the market is offering because looking at other options is a reasonable way to test your worth. 

Yes. Employers don't have to give a pay rise unless it's in your employment agreement. They must consider your request and respond in good faith, and they can't pay you differently because of things like gender, ethnicity, age or disability.

There's no fixed rule. Agree a date with your manager when you get your answer, and use the time to work on the feedback. Come back with new examples of what you've delivered since you asked.

Not automatically. First find out why, work on the feedback and check what similar roles pay. If the gap is real and there's no clear path to close it, looking at other options is reasonable.