Instead of layoffs, a growing number of employers are resorting to salary cuts as the recession drags on.

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I recently found out that somebody at my company that has the exact same position as me is making more money than I am. It’s not much, but my salary being adjusted to theirs would come out to about a 2.8% raise. I work for a relatively small company, so I didn’t think this kind of discrepancy would occur. My co-worker and I were hired at the same time, started the same day at the same entry level position, and were even recently promoted on the same day to the next level in our group. What should I do about this? Do I bring it up to my boss, or HR? Should I bring it up at all, or will it make me sound petty? I would appreciate any advice with this topic seeing as it is often seen as a taboo subject to discuss in the workplace.

I have wonderful academic credentials, I speak 2 languages, studied abroad, and have presented my research at conferences. Unfortunately, I had no choice to take a very low-paying job due to desperation. My paychecks are about $10 more than unemployment. However, I'm very grateful for finally having a job.

After 6 months of working in administration, I'm on my way to a promotion at work. My boss and manager are training me to be a back up to a certain position. They're are being sneaky about it by saying I'll be the "back up", but the woman has awful work ethic, so I will be eventually replacing her. They did not give me a raise for the extra duties I took on. PLUS, my co-worker quit last month, so I have been balancing the workload that we both had, along with training for the "back up" position. Again, no pay raise.
<Truth is, my boss is very stingy when it comes to money. He hesitates to buy sugar and creamer for the break room. (I know this, since I'm the one conducting the purchase orders).>

I researched the average salary for this position in my city. It's a pretty high-paid position according to several sources. However, I KNOW I will not be offered this amount. The business suffered the worst of years for the past 2 years, and has been finally climbing up. But due to stinginess, I have a suspicion that I'll barely be offered half, maybe 2/3 of the city's average. For me, my job is about the paycheck since it's not in my field, and I'm barely surviving with what I have (remember, it's as much as unemployment), and I have credit card debt due to unemployment for 6 months. With that being said, I am proud to having a great work ethic (Employee of the Month after 4 months of employment =} ).

How do I negotiate for a salary I NEED, and that I KNOW I deserve from a struggling company, should the situation arise.