[tab name=’Guidelines’]

Guidelines : Salary Requirements

Nonselection of Applicants: Salary Requirements

Guidelines and Alternate Phrases

• Thank the applicant for his or her interest in working for your company, being specific about the time and effort spent in interviewing, travel to your site, and references or other information furnished for your evaluation.
• Thank you for giving us an opportunity to consider your experience in filling the plant manager position. We especially appreciate your time in making the special trip to Dallas for the interview.
• Thank you for forwarding your résumé to us; we appreciate the opportunity to look at so qualified a candidate for our clinic.
• We want you to know first of all how grateful we are for your willingness to interview with us when such a great distance was involved. Your travel here made it so much easier on all our staff to talk with you firsthand about their expectations for this position.
• Thank you, Marilyn, for visiting with us about the job we have available in Clinton. We also very much appreciate the time you took in supplying us with such a complete portfolio.
• Now that the dust has settled, we as a team have been able to talk more seriously about the position for which you interviewed. We thank you for your patience and interest in coming to work for us.
• Frank, we so much appreciate the time you’ve spent with us during this past month while we have been outlining plans for the European expansion.
• I wanted to update you on the status of your résumé with our Facilities Management division, and to thank you for bearing with us. As you probably realize, when we fill a position as important as the one we discussed with you, we are very deliberate in our evaluation process.
• Thank you for taking the time to interview with us. We realize time is one commodity graduate students have in short supply, and we appreciate the interest you’ve shown in Wellesey.
• Thank you for talking with us about the management position in Saudi Arabia. Your experience and achievements have such a direct bearing on the position we have been most anxious to work out all the details.
• Thank you so much for spending the time to go through the lengthy interviewing process with us. In addition to the time here on site, I know you also spent hours on the phone with other of our managers.
• Thank you for the two trips you made to Dallas to talk with us about the sales position. They were time-consuming, and we appreciate the effort.
• Comment on the applicant’s experience, achievements, or attributes appropriate to the job, and then give the salary issue as your reason for the turndown. State under what conditions, if any, you might reconsider the decision.
• With your telecommunication expertise and your management experience, we certainly wanted to be able to bring you aboard in this position. However, as we discussed among ourselves in evaluating your résumé, budget has always been a thorn in our side here. We find we just can’t come up with the money to meet your salary expectations.
• We were very impressed with your achievements at Belview–the two service awards this past year particularly. But after re-evaluating our needs here, we just do not feel we can justify the salary requirements you outlined for us.
• Although we wish we could hire someone with your pleasant disposition and willingness–even eagerness–to travel, we find your salary expectations exceed what the job pays.
• Frankly, Belinda, we thought you were perfect for the position, but we can’t meet your salary needs.
• Your experience at Barington and your academic ties seemed just the thing to sway our management team here. The problem is the salary range you mentioned.
• Although there is no doubt you are qualified for this job–even over-qualified–we simply can’t justify the salary you asked for the skills this job requires.
• Quite honestly, Bob, you were the best-qualified candidate. We just can’t pay the $80,000 salary you requested. Perhaps, if we ever reorganized so this position encompassed both divisions, that salary might be feasible. But we have no such plans at the present.
• We have no doubt you could handle the job we discussed. Our problem is with the salary–we simply can’t meet your requirements.
• Wish the applicant well in the job search. If you wish, express regret in not having been able to agree on salary.
• Thank you again for talking with us about your career plans; we regret we were unable to agree on salary. In any case, best wishes to you.
• We appreciate so much the opportunity to get to know you and regret only that we were unable to make you an offer. Our best as you look elsewhere.
• It was so nice to learn more about your work and plans for the future, and it is with regret we have to forego the opportunity of a suitable working arrangement. We hope you find exactly what you’re looking for.
• Thank you for making the effort to interview with us. I wish we could have found a position for you here. Good luck elsewhere.
• We wish you the best in finding the job you want and deserve.
• We want you to know we think your qualifications justify the salary requirements you have, and we wish you the best in locating a suitable position immediately.

[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 1′]

Example 1: Applicant reject letters due to salary

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear Mr. Terciametz:

Thank you for taking the time to talk with us about the engineering position in our Montana location. After visiting with you last week, we were impressed with your investment results in the last few years and particularly intrigued with the new investment strategy you outlined for us.

As we discussed, however, in a new fund such as ours, budget decisions aren’t changed lightly. We have established what we feel is a reasonable salary for the position and have determined to stay within that range. Although you no doubt could contribute greatly to our efforts here, we regret we can’t meet your salary expectations.

You have our best wishes in your job search as you seek a position with a more seasoned organization than ours. We’ll be hoping to hear good things from you in the future.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 2′]

Example 2: Example of non selection letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State Zip

Dear John:

Thank you for discussing employment possibilities with EZEE-Grow. I sincerely appreciate the time you spent with me in the interview and regret to tell you we were unable to find the funds to meet your salary requirements.

We will keep the information you provided us in our active file for six months. In the event we have an opening at the level for which you want to be considered, we will contact you again to determine your interest.

I wish you the best in finding a rewarding position where your talents can be fully used.

Cordially,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 3′]

Example 3: Sample applicant rejection letter

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Roger:

I want you to know how much I enjoyed our recent interview together. I truly feel that you would be an outstanding addition to our team. Your financial abilities are well documented, and your theories concerning innovations in finance management were intriguing.

Unfortunately, your salary requirements exceed the amount we were authorized for this position’s salary. Given your exceptional credentials and talents I think that I could convince the committee to authorize an additional $10,000 a year, but I know that would be as high as we could go. If you are interested in the position at that price, please contact me.

I’m sorry we could not meet your salary requirements. If you do not wish to re-negotiate, please accept my sincere good wishes on your job search.

Regards,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 4′]

Example 4: Letter of rejection after interview

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Ms. McBride:

I was impressed with your technical writing qualifications, and the portfolio samples you submitted during our interview. The flight from Maine to Alaska must have been quite exhausting, and we appreciate the time you took from your current job to fly to our Fairbanks office.

Unfortunately, we are unable to meet the salary requirements you requested. We are extremely sorry about this—we feel you would have been a valuable addition to our team.

We wish you luck in securing employment.

Sincerely,
[/tab]
[tab name=’Example 5′]

Example 5: Regret letters

Company Name or Letterhead
Address
City, State, Zip

Date

Addressee
Address
City, State, Zip

Dear Max:

I would like to thank you for the time you committed to going through three rounds of interviews with our company for the position of General Manager. I realize that these interviews were quite intense, and I was impressed with the sense of ease and professionalism you exhibited—two qualities that we prize in our managers. Unfortunately, the salary you are requesting exceeds the amount that we are able to offer at this time.

I wish you success in finding a company that can offer you a salary equal to your abilities.

Regards,
[/tab]
[end_tabset]