How do you handle the salary and benefits issues during your job interview?

Employment seems hard to find these days. Nevertheless, when you do, there is always the question of salary and benefits. Of course, assuming that you were already given a job offer. Because if you are not yet at this stage of your job interview, you might want to set that aside for a while. I have witnessed fresh college graduates countless of times who are too eager to get the job and impress the interviewer that they would immediately jump on the gun on these issues. This is a no no.

Now, if you were competing with a host of other unemployed, would you consider foregoing other benefits in order to be hired? Would you consider working without the usual health care benefits, car allowance program, representations, uniform subsidies, etc.?

The harsh reality of being an unemployed during a recession is that you sometimes do not have the upper hand in terms of setting your ‘price tag’ when it comes to employment. You will usually find yourself at the mercy of the employer in terms of how you should take commensurate to your qualifications. With a long line of other candidates of the same qualification as yours who are willing to take anything that is offered, you will find that you do not have anything to leverage.

So, how do you handle this? Would you just decline the job offer or bite the bullet?