002: Post-doc salary, absent PIs, and the secret of landing industry jobs - Hello PhD

Summary: The Obama administration has <a href="http://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/NPRM2015/">proposed some new rules</a> that would give overtime pay to salaried workers making less than $50,400 per year.  Who cares?  Many post-docs who make the NIH recommended $42,840 seem to care!<br> In this episode, we explore whether the new rules would apply to post-docs, and how post-doc salary has stagnated over the last ten years.  If you have a dog in this fight, be sure to register your opinion on the <a href="http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=WHD-2015-0001">regulations.gov</a> website before the September deadline.<br> What do you do if you need help in lab, and the PI is never around?  A grad student asks:<br> I’m doing a rotation in a fairly well-known micro lab, and the PI isn’t around much.  I’m working under a Post-doc, but he’s really busy, and every time I ask for help he tells me he’ll help me later.  I’ve lost a couple of weeks waiting on him – what should I do?<br> Is an online application good enough to land an industry job, or are there steps you can take to improve your chance of getting noticed?  A job-searching scientists writes:<br> I’m looking for industry jobs, and I found one that sounds interesting at a local biotech company.  I applied using their online portal, but I’m wondering if there’s something else I can do to improve my chances of getting an interview.<br> Last but not least, we embrace our inner hipsters by drinking Dale’s Pale Ale and we uncover the hidden meaning of the word “autoclave.”  It doesn’t mean “sterilizer!”<br>