I don’t have a question, just an experience to share with other job seekers out there.

Eleven stressful days of waiting by the phone after my interview, I received a written job offer by Fed-Ex on a Saturday morning. I had been hoping for a phone call, so the package was a surprise. I really want this position and I’m very excited to receive the offer, but the salary offer is lower than my last position.(Salary had not been mentioned during the interview. I had to fill out an application including my salary history prior to the interview.) The offer package included a HR rep’s name and phone number to call if I had any questions or if I wanted to accept or decline.

Over the weekend, I went through the research of comparing my education, training and experience using a few Internet sites and I decided that I should negotiate the salary. This is something that makes me very uncomfortable (butterflies in my stomach and serious nail-biting action), but I screwed up my courage and called the HR rep on Monday morning. The individual did not answer and the message indicated he would be gone until Wednesday! No one’s name was provided as a backup. So, I can’t negotiate and I can’t accept and I can’t decline! Of course I left a message, but this situation seems really ironic.

My husband suggested I contact the HM, but since I want to negotiate the salary, I think I need to go through HR. Its only one more day to wait and since I’ve been waiting 2 weeks now, I think I can stick it out.

By the way, I know some folks on this board have been looking for work a long time and my little story may hit you the wrong way.