A salary cap is a limit on the amount teams can spend on player contracts, which helps to maintain competitive balance in the league. Without a salary cap, teams with deeper pockets can simply outspend the remaining teams for the better free agents. The basic idea is that a team can only sign a free agent if the total payroll for the team will not exceed the salary cap. So a team with deep pockets is playing on a level playing field with every other team.

This is a tricky question to be answered carefully. Interviewers often accept people with realistic financial goals.) If you mention a salary that is low it shows that you are not up to the mark. If you mention too high you have ruined a chance to get a job. So the best is to ask for the salary they offer and then show your capacity, how your experience and qualification rate with what is offered.

Do not bluff. Be specific on the answer. Do not hesitate to say the benefits you enjoyed in the previous job. It may be verified so never mention the benefits you have not got.

Please note that all discussions regarding salary should take place between the preceptor and intern. HRTP does not partake in salary discussions.

The salary you are offered will be dependent on your qualifications and experience. Full-time contract teachers based in Bangkok are guaranteed a minimum monthly salary of between 30,000 Baht and 35,000 Baht (100 - 120 contract hours). The guaranteed minimum salary for teachers working in the provinces is between 20,000 and 30,000 Baht per month, depending on location. All salaries are paid in local currency.

Each July the league projects Basketball Related Income (BRI) and benefits for the upcoming season. They take a defined percentage of projected BRI (see the chart below), subtract projected benefits (about $112 million in 2005-06), and make adjustments based on whether the previous season's BRI was above or below projections. They then divide by the number of NBA teams (except expansion teams in their first two seasons) to arrive at the cap.

There are both minimum and maximum salaries, and both are based on how long the player has been in the league. The minimum salaries scale upward each season. Here are the minimum salaries: whichever is greater. They use a different cap calculation to determine the maximum salaries, which is based on 48.04% of projected BRI. For example, even though the actual salary cap for 2005-06 is $49.5 million the 0-6 year maximum salary is $12 million, not $12.375 million.

Yes. In multi-year contracts, only the first season's salary is subject to the maximum (but there are restrictions about how big raises can be from year to year). For players whose contracts were signed prior to the current CBA (i.e., prior to July, 2005) it is possible for a trade bonus (see question number 83) to to increase the salary above the maximum.

LARRY BIRD EXCEPTION -- This is the best known one. Players who qualify for this exception are called "Qualifying Veteran Free Agents" in the CBA, and this exception is a component of the Veteran Free Agent exception. This exception allows teams to exceed the salary cap to re-sign their own free agents, up to the player's maximum salary. The player must have played for three seasons without being waived or changing teams as a free agent.

The NBA does not publish player salaries. However, there are a number of unofficial sources for salaries. One of the best is Patricia Bender's:

That depends on where you work and what hours. A local, county, state or federal institution often will pay a salary with benefits. Private practice tends to make more income, but you have no benefits, such as vacation or health insurance.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not collect data on starting salaries. Some job outlook statements in the Occupational Outlook Handbook present information on starting salaries provided by selected outside sources.