I received a job contract, but the salary is not so suitable. Who should call first: I to them or them to me?

You should be the first to call because you are the contractor – it’s your money to earned, most importantly, your services they are bidding for.

The person who calls first is the dominant party, and is able to make counteroffers or even decline. If you wait for them to call you, it’s putting yourself in the submissive position.

Remember, don’t look at the bid as a transaction – look at it as them saying how much they think you are worth. If you look at it like that, especially considering you have another contract available, you should be offended that they are lowballing you.

Call them back, and suggest a counteroffer. Make sure your voice is steady and firm, and do not inform them of the other offer unless they continue to refuse. When you do mention the other offer, say “I have another offer that is well within my range, so we should come back to this deal at a later date. Thank you for your time.”

This will result in either keeping the relationship with them, or having them beg. Both are good for you.

I noticed English wasn’t your first language – and this dominant attitude is the way it’s done in America – and mostly what they are expecting from you. :) Forgive me if I am wrong about your origin! /bows

You should call them. say you have thought it over, and the salary they are offering is not good enough. Then ask, “Can you do better?”

Then sit and wait for an answer.

I would negotiate. I would take the approach of knowing times are tough and businesses are trying to make a go of it with lower overhead especially salaries. Acknowledge the salary as insufficient and ask them to raise their offer and if they stand firm then inquire as to the opportunities you would have in the future to earn a higher salary and when or how that would happen.

IMO liking what you do is as important if not more important that the amount of compensation. Take what you can get and have fun doing what you love to do!

You make the call, it’s your salary we are discussing. take the first step and see what developes.

You should call them, and say the offer isn’t good enough, and could they better it.
Then it is up to them to make the next move.

I made that call, didn’t get any answer yet. Waiting… Hope they will improve the offer. I think they may give things that are equivalent for more salary like: more days off, Cell phone expenses… I am willing for that, it is money after all.

They’ve made an offer, and they’re waiting to hear yea or nay from you before they decide what to do next. This isn’t like a farmer’s market or bazaar, where you and a merchant are face-to-face and a seller might offer an immediate new offer as he senses you about to turn away. It’s not like that at all.

The company has evaluated their needs and your application and made a judgment about how much they think they can offer you and retain your services. It may not be their final offer, but they’re not going to make another one until they know that they have to. The only way for them to know that is for you to refuse outright, in which case the negotiation is ended and their search for a candidate resumes, or for you to express dissatisfaction with the terms of the offer, but not a flat refusal.

Some companies hold more in reserve in the way of salary, where the marketplace for your type of services is more fluid and in demand, for example, or in a booming economy, and some companies are more flexible in offering non-monetary terms: work from home two days a week? flexible hours? more vacation time? more overtime? accelerated review for a raise after a period of acclimation?

Decide what it is that you really need, and then ask for that. But they’re waiting to hear from you now, and that much is certain.

I used to do a lot of contract work. If a company does not accept my bid or we cannot negotiate terms, I walk. It is pretty simple. If you buckle and run scared, the next contract will require more and pay less. It’s supply and demand.

As I reread the original question and some of the other answers, and especially the one from @Ron_C, I’m confused by the wording.

When you say that you “received a contract” but you find “the salary is not suitable” I’m wondering: are you contracting for work (as an independent contractor) or are you trying to land a salaried job? Those are both very different things, and even the negotiation will be different. My first answer was regarding “getting a job”, but I think that @Ron_C‘s response was about “accepting a contract”.

Which are you doing?

During the interview and negotiations, did you give them a salary amount you would require, and did they come back with less than that, or did they come back at what you asked for, but you were hoping they would offer more?

@CyanoticWasp , getting a job. I am finishing my work at my corrent position and moving to my next job in another company. I got the job contract just today.

@BarnacleBill , this is my situation: I got two job contaract from two different companies. There are wage differences between the two proposals, mainly salary. The company I prefer given the lowest salary and I was hoping they would raise the salary so I will be more happy to choose them.

I told them I got another contract which is better and I will be glad if they can check what they can imporve in their contract. For example, update the salary.

@Ranimi23, perhaps you use the term “consultant” for what we in the U.S.call a “contractor”—meaning someone who is not an employee of the company but supplies services to them as work for hire (on “contract”). Are you paid by automatically receiving a paycheck from a payroll department, or do you send them an invoice that they pay like a bill? Those are two different relationships.

I’m interpreting contract as “written offer of employment.”

While we all work for money, if the salary is not so different, then you need to evaluate the differences between the companies. The way to do this is to make a list of all of the characteristics that are important to you – size, location, clients, manager, etc. Assign each item a rating of high/medium/low importance. High = 5 Medium = 3 low = 1.

Then evaluate each company as to how they rate on each item on the list, on a scale of 1 – 9. For example location of the company. Is the location of company A better than company B? If so, then give each company a score on how how they rate. For example, if company A is 2 blocks away, and company B is 3 miles away, then you might give company A a 9 for location, because you could walk to work, whereas company B may be a bus ride, so that might score a 7 for an easy bus ride, or a 5 if you have to transfer. If location is of high priority because you don’t have a car, then company A is worth 45 and and B is worth 35. Good places to each lunch nearby or provides me a cell phone may not be as important as location, so it’s important to weight the criteria so value is factored in.

I agree with everyone who says you should contact them first. However, if it were I (and it has been, many times), I’d put the initial request for more money (or benefits or perks) into the form of a letter (not an email) and back up my request with a list of reasons why I believe I’m worth the extra money. Writing rather than calling gives you several important advantages: First, it allows you time to formulate exactly what you want to ask for and to articulate it clearly and logically without the emotion that that might come up in a call or face-to face-meeting. Second, it shows them that are are interested enough in the work and confident enough in your skills to take the time and effort to formulate your desires in writing. And third, it gives them a chance to consider your offer and perhaps counter-offer without feeling undue pressure.

My husband would always call them back. If you let them sit and guess than they will move on thinking your not interested or worth the trouble.

UPDATE !
It was a job offer, but the first salary was too low. I had another job offer for a same position in another company with a better salary. I asked them to improve their offer. At first they said “No way”, but after that they want to raise the salary with more 2000$ a year, but at the end I got more 4000$ for a year after I convinced them I was worth that salary.

Is it quite a nice achievement for a job salary negotiations?

The difference between the two proposals was 8000$ for a year, at the end I got half of it and took the job I really wanted in the company I prefer that gave the lower salary.

Congratulations, @Ranimi23! Nice way to handle it.