Respect Equality

What is a dry promotion and should you accept one?

Learn more about the practice.

Story at a glance


  • A “dry promotion” is a boost in responsibility and title without a pay raise.

  • Employers “think this is a great thing.”

  • For employees, however, that deal might not look so great, though experts say they can negotiate.

(NewsNation) — Employers are cutting costs by offering employees what are known as “dry promotions.” Here’s what you need to know about the practice.

“You get all the responsibility, you get all the work, you do get that title, but you do not get the pay bump that should be coming with said promotion,” said NewsNation business contributor Lydia Moynihan.

From a corporate perspective, bosses may see dry promotions as a sign they’re invested in an employee and recognize their hard work by offering them a new title and additional responsibility.

“They see it as a way to basically give somebody a gold star, give somebody a slap on the back for doing a good job,” Moynihan said. “They think this is a great thing.”

For employees, however, that deal might not look so great when those added responsibilities don’t come with more money in their paychecks.

“A lot of job experts encourage employees to take advantage of the opportunity to negotiate,” Moynihan said.

Some things employees might ask for include flexible working arrangements, additional paid time off or other benefits to offset the lack of raise. It’s also possible that a title bump could help employees in the job market if they decide to look elsewhere for that higher salary.

But workers may find that even those benefits aren’t worth taking on added responsibility for the same pay.

“You can’t pay your rent with a title,” Moynihan said.


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