Stephanie Heredia’s promotion came a year too late and more than a few dollars short. Heredia, 29, started an accountant job at a small Tampa, Florida firm, with the promise that her $60,000 base salary would rise to $100,000 after one year.
But at the last minute, she told Fortune, the timeline became two years. Her eventual salary—$90,000, plus commissions. As the firm grew from four people to 25, Heredia’s responsibilities ballooned. She was charged with opening a new unit in Puerto Rico, which went on to generate an additional $2 million annually for the firm, but asking for a raise felt “like talking to a brick wall,” Heredia said.
