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Do it, but smartly. Don't walk in like "I know so and so makes more than me so what gives?" Maybe go with "I've gotten a better sense of where compensation is landing for people doing comparable work at similar levels of seniority and understand that my compensation is meaningfully below that range. I'd like to understand how my compensation is being calibrated and what needs to happen to close that gap." Make them squirm and work on a solution.
You'll need to be prepped to back up justification for your raise with whatever- change in your workload, taking on leadership roles, billlable hours if you have them, good reviews. But that backup should focus on you, not the comparable higher salaried persons.
FYI ALWAYS negotiate your salary when given the chance. That's probably how John Doe is making $30k more than Jane Doe over there. Men historically take more opportunities to negotiate than women.
Rising Star
This is why I never tell anyone my salary. If that person didn’t state their worth at the hiring stage and someone else did, that doesn’t entitle them or other associates to more money. My pay shouldn’t be the basis for your pay.
At my last firm I made significantly more than my peers. It was a black box firm. Why? Because when I got hired I had my recruiter negotiate me to the top of their salary band and the firm accepted it. Even got a signing bonus. I would’ve walked otherwise. Meanwhile I knew for a fact that the other associate on my team who they hired from Legal Services was willing to accept much less.
You use the word “entitle” for this. Are you entitled to more pay, regardless of ability, just because you asked for it? If so, other people also asking for more pay with better peer information— why would they not be entitled? Why is that not just as fair as a negotiation strategy as your strategies? There’s a reason there are laws that make sure we aren’t prohibited from discussing. But you already know that.
A friend of mine tried that one year and was reamed out by the partner for having discussed salary with other attorneys. He then proceeded to tell her she was "fungible" and worth less to the firm than his secretary. It was ugly and the beginning of her end at the firm.
Yikes, hopefully he’s not an L&E partner