I've been working as a writing consultant for a nonprofit for the last few months as a contractor, with the idea being that if I proved myself during my contract, I'd receive a full-time offer. Prior to my contract expiring, I was offered full-time employment. The CEO asked what sounded like a fair salary, and I said “I guess whatever I'm making now just extrapolated into salary, so I don't know what that'd be, somewhere in the $50k range?”
This was my one error – I didn't do the math first. I make $27/hr, which amounts to a little over $56k in full-time salary. I quickly realized I lowballed myself by saying $50k, but it was just an estimate and I immediately amended my stance to request $56k instead.
I also requested mental health accommodations. I have generalized anxiety disorder, depression and PTSD, and there are days that I need to work from home or leave the office and finish the day at home to avoid mentally exhausting myself. I wanted to be transparent with them by disclosing my conditions.
Fast forward a few weeks and I get a call from HR, which began exactly like this:
“So, something has been brought to my attention – I hear you have some anxiety?”
Took me totally off guard but whatever. I explained in detail my conditions, my therapist's recommendations, and how accommodations allow me to do a better job. I was then immediately asked if I'd rather just remain a contractor instead. No, I said, I thought we agreed I'd be coming on full time.
So I get my salary offer – $52k. Which amounts to a pay cut of about $2/hr. I held firm and said I didn't think I've done anything to justify a pay cut, but I came down to $55k to see if they'd meet me there.
I get a call from HR again saying that the CEO is unwilling to offer me higher than $52k because “she would like to see if I can do the job first”. This felt like a total slap in the face and a pretty clear reference to my accommodations request. I've acquired $4m worth of proposals for this company in three months, even with no prior grant writing experience – I think it's pretty safe to say I know what I'm doing. So what's the issue then? I disclose my mental health diagnoses, and suddenly I'm offered a pay cut and asked if I'd rather just stay on as a contractor – doesn't seem like a coincidence.
This whole thing feels like discrimination. The tone of negotiations changed pretty substantially after I requested accommodations, and to say that I need to prove myself while offering a paycut feels extremely insulting. Granted, I should've led with $60k, but even though I said $50k, I immediately amended my stance and explained my math was off.
Is this just fairly standard stuff brought on by a negotiation blunder, or does this seem like a potential ADA violation?