Minimum salary level for a specific job post

[zlokotlokrp]

I'm about to receive a job offer for the following position: 1085 Avdelingsingeniør

 

This is my first job in Norway so I am not familiar with salary levels I can expect to be offered. I did find a lot of information online, though, it's really amazing how much information is publicly available and easily found.

 

So, apparently, based on the information I found at this website, this specific position belongs to LR22 paytable.

 

 

This table is shown below:

 

 

I have a couple of questions:

1. Does this mean that the lowest salary that I can be offered is level 36? Is it allowed by law to work on lower salary level than 36 at this position?
   
2. I have several years of experience working in the field (in my home country, though). Should I expect this to be taken into account, and should I negotiate about this if it's not taken?
   
3. Can somebody explain what does alt. column mean in LR22 table?
   
4. What is the general aptitude towards negotiations of Norwegian employers? Would it be considered rude to ask for a salary 3-4 levels higher (provided I can back my "request" because I have a lot of experience in the field that I am going to work in)?
   

I think my misunderstanding comes from the language barrier (I do not speak Norwegian, yet) and because I have never worked in Norway, so I'm not sure about the business culture there.

 

My offer should come in a couple of days, so I'd like to be prepared if it comes to negotiation.

 

Thank you very much in advance.

Endret 31. mai 2015 av zlokotlokrp

[Herr Brun]

1: Yes, the absolute lowest salary that you can be offered (if your prospective employer is the Norwegian state, as opposed to a municipal or private entity) if you are offered a job as "avdelingsingeniør".

2: Yes, you should expect this to be taken into account, at least if you can document your experience. According to the document you referred to (Statens Personalhåndbok), the state has to take into account all your working experience, as long as it is documented.

3: Alt. means alternative. "LR22" is short for "lønnsramme 22", which means "salary framework 22". It is a framework with different salary ladders for different positions. This framework (all the different "LRs") are supposed to cover all the different positions in the state, from floor sweepers to senior economists to lawyers to university professors, so it's quite complicated. "LR x alt. y" is sort of a referral system.

4: Negotiations are normal and expected, but negotiating with the state is quite complicated. As long as the position was advertised with "stillingskode 1085" (position code) they can only hire you in this position code, which means they are bound by LR22 alt. 2 as the highest salary ladder, which goes from salary level 37 to 46. And level 46 is for those with 28 years of experience. They are allowed to give you "fictional experience" to place you at a higher salary level, but the framework goes from 37 to an absolute high of 46, which gives you a feeling for the salaries that they can pay.

 

If you are certain that you want to move to Norway and work as an engineer, I would strongly consider contacting a union, for example NITO. They have a lot of experience with these types of questions.

[zlokotlokrp]

Only one more thing: why is exactly alt. 2 effective at this position? I understand what various LRs are for, but I can't grasp the concept of these alt. levels within a specific lønnsramme.

 

Thank you for thorough answers, that's very useful information for me.

And as you suspected, the employer is the state, so your answers are spot on.