Up to now, they’ve been very tight with how much employees receive in compensation. Their starting salary is around $19, and has been for many years; a salary which is difficult to live on unless you’re living with roommates, or your family. I’ve seen several people struggle with this if they live alone. In the past, they would offer a 2% cost of living adjustment, which is typically 1% below the National inflation, and employees have to demand better pay or, unfortunately, threaten to leave in order to receive reasonable raises. Management has traditionally made many promises regarding cross-training in XRD or TEM which they have sadly never honored for as long as I’ve been here.