How to stay employed and earn more money when jobs are scarce and pay rates low

Now is not the time to be in cruise control at work, including when it comes to pay negotiations. By Frances Cook

“Don’t ask, don’t get” has never been more true for our money then when you look at the employment world right now. In fact, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s more like “ask, still don’t get”.

The OECD put out a report this month saying New Zealand had the worst wage growth of any country in the developed world over the past five years.

Cool!

At the same time, New Zealand’s unemployment rate has climbed up to 5.3%, with youth unemployment particularly high.

While it is undeniably tough out there, the unfortunate reality this leaves us with is that when the system isn’t moving the number for you, the only person left to move it is you. The people still getting a raise at a time like this are the ones who are getting strategic about it.

Start as you mean to go on

This can vary between industries and companies, but there are still solid stats showing you can command a pay premium when you move to a job with a new company, rather than asking for a raise at your current one.

At times, the average increase for job switchers is as high as an 8.4% premium, according to the Atlanta Fed’s Wage Growth Tracker. Bank of America has tracked a 6.6% pay boost for job switchers.

Put simply, you’re in the strongest negotiating position when you enter a company.

So when you get a job offer, it's important to take your time to negotiate your new salary – and don't be shy about asking for the amount you're a) worth and b) you know others in equal positions are earning elsewhere.

Sure, holding out for what you're worth can be hard when you're pathetically grateful to have been offered the job. You're also still the newbie and therefore trying to make an excellent impression. But the evidence shows that, once you're employed, your salary is unlikely gallop ajhead by several percent every year. In fact, you're lucky if it will keep pace with inflation. So lock in a decent rate at the beginning, and then you won't cry over those paltry yearly increases quite as much.

Salary isn't the only thing to negotiate

If your company really can’t give you a raise (or meet your expetations at the outset, as above) and you can't see opportunities elsewhere, there are other ways to ensure you still have more money at the end of the week.

Besides, some of the non-money perks might genuinely be more valuable to you.

Robert Walters’ 2026 New Zealand Salary Guide found 80% of employees wanted a flexible working arrangement, 43% would go for extra leave, and 39% were keen on different financial benefits like employee shares schemes and bonuses.

The ideal is to find something that increases the money in your back pocket, even if it’s not costing the company.

Flexible hours might save you money because of lower traffic, or create lower childcare costs.

Working from home more frequently could save you a bomb in petrol and parking costs.

Depending on your company, you might also get employee discounts on certain goods or services, that could really help the budget.

Think about what might be possible, and if the boss says no to cold hard cash, suggest a workaround instead.

Upskill to stay valuable

In the current fast-paced job market, it’s easy to fall behind on the skills that are earning the most money.

Even better than a raise in your current job is looking for a promotion, or sideways move, into an area that pays more as a baseline. That can mean boosting your skill base.

And while employers once used to invest in employee learning, that’s now getting rarer.

A perk worth negotiating for in the future, yes. Until then, don’t wait for someone else to give you the gift of being worth more.

LinkedIn Learning is full of courses run by industry experts, and can be accessed for free when you use a library card. There are also great options on sites like Coursera, and of course plenty of short courses at techs and night schools around New Zealand.

PwC’s 2026 Global AI Jobs Barometer analysed job listings across 27 countries, and found that roles requiring AI skills are growing nearly eight times faster than the job market overall.

The people with those skills are commanding a wage premium of over 60%. Not too shabby.

Human skills are still highly prized alongside those AI skills, though.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 found analytical thinking, leadership, resilience, and creativity was at the top of the list of skills that are most in demand.

AI is raising the value of human judgement to go alongside it, not lowering it.

Make yourself visible

A common mistake is to think that you just need to show up, do a good job, and it will be noticed and rewarded.

Unfortunately, we all need to be making sure we’re clearly communicating our work and our value, to coworkers, to clients, and definitely to the boss.

Otherwise, the reality is you’ll probably be out-competed by someone who does a better job of selling themselves, even if they’re not actually as skilled as you.

Everyone is busy, and focused on their own work. If you want to be noticed, make it happen. Consider sending a weekly or fortnightly wrap email to your boss, of what you’ve been working on, and wins you’ve locked in.

You can also make use of the digital world to publish some of your work and knowledge, on places like LinkedIn, and even Instagram.

You’d be amazed the opportunities that can come your way just from being top of mind.

The information in this column is general in nature and should not be read as personal financial advice.