Here's how to find out if you're being paid fairly

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After nearly a decade of stagnation, wages are starting to rise as a strong job market (finally) gives American workers more power in negotiations.

Securing a raise at work is good for workers over both the short and long-term since higher pay compounds and can add up significantly over the course of a working career.

“What you’re making when you start out has an impact on what you’ll make in the future, and on your overall net worth,” says millennial career expert Jill Jacinto. “As you change jobs and move forward in the process, you want to make sure you’re combatting underpayment early on.”

Before scheduling a sit-down with your boss to demand more money, however, it’s important to make sure you have a realistic idea of what you should be paid. Follow these steps to determine whether you're fairly compensated.

Think about how you were hired and your last salarynegotiation.A Glassdoor survey last year found thatthree in five Americans failed to negotiate when offered a job.That may have been even more common among those who have foundjobs during the Great Recession making some workers timid aboutnegotiating for more money. If you were hired during thedownturn and hadn't recently asked for a raise, there’s a goodchance that you’re being underpaid.

If you’ve been with a company for a long time and nevernegotiated a raise, you may have missed out on the opportunityto up your pay. That’s especially true if you’ve been promotedwithout a commensurate raise, a common practice during andafter the recession when companies had the leverage to getworkers to do more work for the same pay. Three-quarters ofpeople who ask for more money get at least a small raise,according to PayScale. 

Check the surveys.
Trade organizationsoften publish salary data that can give you a broad sense ofwhat someone in your position should make, although you mayneed to recalculate based on the size of your company and thecost of living in your area. Web sites like Vault.com andGetRaised also offer company and job-specific salary data basedon surveys of anonymous users. Recent graduates should alsocheck in with their alma mater to see whether the school makesavailable alumni salary data. “You should be able to tellwithin a few thousand dollars what the range is,” says VickyOliver, the Manhattan-based author of 301 Smart Answers toTough Business Etiquette Questions.
Ask around.
While talking about salarycan be awkward, getting intel from co-workers and industrypeers can be incredibly helpful in determining whether your owncompensation is legitimate. The best sources for this arecolleagues in the same exact role as you are, both within yourcompany and at competitors. If you’re in touch with yourpredecessor, finding out what she made when in your position isalso key.

Asking someone how much money they make can be uncomfortable,but once you’ve established a networking relationship, youmight casually mention how much money you earn and see whetherthey think it’s in the right ballpark.

While some companies encourage transparency around salaries,others have rules prohibiting employees from sharing suchinformation. Be sure you know what your company’s policy is andwhether your state has laws protecting your rights to discuss yoursalary information.

Interview elsewhere. One of the best ways todiscover what you’re truly worth is to get a job offersomewhere else. If the salary offer is significantly more thanwhat you’re making now, you can be sure that you’re currentlyunderpaid. Once you’ve secured an offer, you can use that toget your current company to pony up (but be ready to jump shipto the higher paying gig if your boss says “no”).

Even if you don’t end up with a job offer, you can still getuseful salary info by going through the process. Spend sometime on industry job boards, since some postings themselves,including those posted by your current company, may provide asalary range. If you’re working with a recruiter, they can alsobe a great source of inside info on compensation in yourfield.

Include the value of your benefits.
Ifyou believe that you are underpaid, make sure that you’re alsocalculating the value of non-salary compensation and perks,such as health insurance or the ability to telecommute or worka flexible schedule. “Sometimes people don’t understand theimplications of the benefits package from a dollars-and-centspoint of view,” says Mark Babbitt, founder of YouTern.com. “Ifyou can go somewhere else and make more money, but you have towork longer hours and have no flexibility, you have to ask whatyour lifestyle is worth.”

Consider your performance.
Be realisticabout whether you’ve been a valuable employee to the company.If you consistently receive glowing performance reviews (buthaven’t received commensurate raises), you probably have a goodcase for a raise. However, if you’ve struggled to meet goals orhad other issues, you may want to work on your workplace repbefore asking for extra dough.

A Willis Towers Watson survey last year found that employeeswho received the highest performance ratings received raisesthat were about 77 percent larger than those who got an averagerating. Meanwhile, workers with below-average performanceratings took home raises of less than 1 percent.