Dear Rachel,
 What happened to cost of living increases? I understand some agencies have salary freezes or can't afford annual raises, but I haven't received a raise in three years, and the cost of everything around me seems to be going up regularly (gas, electricity, cable, etc.). I feel I'm in worse shape today than even a year ago. Even a nominal increase would help keep me motivated and make me feel like I'm keeping up with inflation.-- Waiting for a Raise

Dear Waiting,
Cost of living increases were big with unions, utilities and government workers years ago, but they've never been particularly common in industries like media and advertising.

At most agencies salaries are determined by a lot of other factors, but most important is what the demand is in the marketplace for your particular skills.

In tough times, when work is slow and no one is hiring, salaries tend to stay flat and raises are few. When things pick up, salaries will begin to climb again.

Also consider--for what it's worth--that while gasoline is at record levels, a lot of costs have come down, such as telephone service and what it costs to buy a computer today versus five years ago. Still, the cost of living has gone up about 10 percent since your last raise.

You have two courses of action, and one is to go in for a raise, and here you have two arguments to make. The first is that your costs are going up while your salary has not, which means you are really making less than three years ago.

Be prepared to make that case with a few choice examples, say, what you are paying monthly for gasoline versus what you paid three years ago. Your supervisors will relate to what you are presenting because they are facing the same or similar increases.

The second argument is the one that will carry the weight, though. It's what you contribute to the agency.

"Talk to your boss, but stay on point for what you contribute," says long-time New York human resources pro Donna Renella. "Talk about how much more responsibility you have than when you initially were given your salary, how much more effective you are and how much more value the agency gets for you. Then ask for a salary review. You must be better at your job after three years and should be compensated for that."

But here you need to be prepared for a letdown. Your boss may simply not buy the argument that you deserve more, regardless of your rising personal costs.

Or it could be that the agency is feeling a pinch and can't afford to give out raises, no matter how good the person.

You need to know which it is. If times are tough, and they explain that to you, you could decide to stick it out until business improves. That's if you like your job and the people you work with.

But if it's not the economy, if the problem is you, you really need to know that.

You can find another job, but chances are you are going to run into the same issues there. You really need to know just what it is about your work that your supervisors think is sub-par, if that's indeed the problem.

In the end, it makes a lot more sense to address those shortcomings where you already are than to move on.

Look at the people around you. Some are moving up. Those are the people who are open to feedback and always looking to learn and improve. The ones who aren't moving up have stopped listening--and stopped growing.