You can't ask for a raise at most companies, that's not a thing despite what internet articles and people in tech circles think. Most companies have clearly defined, set in stone, pay scales for a position and the only way to move up that scale is via a merit increase. Our merit increases are always at or less than inflation, this year's merit increase didn't even cover the inflation we saw that month.

As far as finding other employment, they don't pay all that much better and I have 15 years of experience doing a very specific thing (air freight customs clearance, just writing the entries) which doesn't really exist a whole lot of places.

Then there is the fact I have a GED (I'm in a degree program but that's still a couple of few years out) when places like Flexport (which isn't even in my state) wants a 4-year degree to even talk to you. Here's a response I got from them when applying to a job before I got married and would have considered moving to Chicago (at the time I had 12 years of actual experience having written over 100k entries):

"Hope all is well, Ryan! I wanted to extend a virtual wave and thank you for your interest in joining our team. You obviously have many of the skills we're looking for. However, for the Customs Brokerage role we require a BA/BS degree as well as previous experience in a broker role doing entries and customs classifications.

Based on your background, there is no doubt that you will shine in your next career endeavor. In the meantime, I hope you have a fantastic rest of your week!

All the best,

REDACTED"

And, from what I could tell, that job would have been a pay cut AND required me moving to a higher cost of living area.