Hourly Pay or Salary?

I got an offer to join a commercial real estate team at a bank. This is my first offer out of college. The overall offer is good, however the pay method confuses me. The offer letter states that I am to be paid on an hourly rate for 40 per week. When you combine the rate with the hours per week and stretch it out over a 52 weeks(1 year) then it does add up to the salary I desired. But my question would be is it common for new grads to be compensated hourly or should I ask to be converted from hourly to salary? 

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Being paid hourly instead of salary screwed me over previously when I applied for a home mortgage because the banks didn’t consider it as a “permanent and full-time” job due to the hourly nature. Might be relevant to consider but take it with a grain of salt since I was less than 1 year into the job

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Just ask for clarification if it is considered salaried or hourly. It may just be procedural for the bank. I mean, when I look at my paycheck there is an "hourly" rate indicated (literally just the biweekly salary amount divided by 80 hrs). But I have form of overtime or anything else (have all the standard PTO stuff of course), but our accounting system apparently works this way (honestly I've never thought it about). Just ask for an explanation before thinking about it. You are probably called an "exempt" employee (legal way of saying no overtime). 

 

Are they going to make you clock in and out or submit a time card?  If so then push for a salary over hourly.   If things get slow they might tell you not to come in and you won't get paid.  It might also impact your potential unemployment benefits should they let you go.  I would be way more worried about your down side than the potential upside through overtime pay...especially in this job market.       

 

I am permanent/full-time and also have the "hourly" item in my employment contract. It was explained to me that this was part of their internal billing process for all employees. Even our contract staff are daily and not hourly (weirdly, they don't have hourly in their contracts).

Just make sure there are no hourly limits when you work (maximum amount of internal billables), but in finance, regardless of how we are booked internally, we all work more time than we book anyway.

 

Is it a W-2 where you still get benefits? Or 10-99 with hourly pay? Is it in your contract to work at least 40 hours per week? Also, is it contract to hire or just a contract with an expiration date? These make differences.

“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.” - Nassim Taleb
 

That's really odd that they pay you on an hourly basis. That's something that they usually do for interns so they're classified as contractors and not full time employees. Check what type of employment classification you have and whether your insurance is covered because I don't know of any banks that would pay hourly for a full time employee. 

 

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