hey GF, is pay negotiated with a new hire or do you follow a table? and what about raises?

or let me give a real world example. you have three finalist for one spot and the one guy you decide to hire flew Air Force Uno. A month later you have to hire again and fast so you call back the previous finalists and the best of the lot is 20 years younger than the previous AF1 guy. and say the resume just meets the mins and is considerably less than the previous guy.

is the pay the same?