In high school I got my first paycheck — along with a rude surprise. I had worked 20 hours, at $7 per hour. I was sure that I’d be getting a check for $140. The check came in at closer to $100. But my teenage financial angst didn’t stop there: I owed my mom $20 for the gas to get to work and another $30 for the clothes I’d purchased for work.

For all my hard work, I’d really made only $50. My real hourly wage was only $2.50, at least for that first week. Because the clothes were a one-time cost, I got a ‘raise’ to $4 the next week.

My hourly wage, both official and actual, have gone up since then. But there’s still a major disparity between the two that is important to remember. Not everyone keeps a close eye on the difference and it can turn into a problem fairly quickly. When you’re looking for a new job, for instance, it’s important to be very aware of your real hourly wage, beyond the taxes automatically taken out. You might be offered a higher wage at a new job, but is it really that much of a better deal?

• Will your commute remain the same? Or will you need to pay more in transportation costs?
• Will you have to pay any costs to move your retirement accounts?
• Will your current wardrobe be appropriate? Or will you need to buy new clothes?
• Will you be traveling more, and paying for more calls home and other costs?

A new job can quickly turn into an expensive proposition.

It’s pretty easy to calculate your real hourly wage. Start with your actual annual earnings — you can make your calculations for shorter periods of time as long as you make sure that all your numbers are comparable. However, I do suggest making the calculations based on yearly numbers because there can be a lot of variation between weekly or biweekly pay periods.

Subtract your annual costs from your earnings. Even if something isn’t officially a work cost, you can still subtract it if you wouldn’t purchase it without your job. That includes meals out with co-workers, shoe polish and that one kind of pen you have to have but the office supply manager won’t purchase for you. The number that results is your actual income.

Divide your actual income by the number of hours you spent on work-related tasks. Odds are pretty good that you spend more than the standard 40 hours per week. Even if that’s what the time clock reads, you should include the time it takes to commute as well as anything else related.

The resulting number is your real hourly wage. Most of the people I’ve talked to look at that number in complete surprise — it’s often 40 percent less than what most people think they’re making. You can bring up your real hourly wage, however, without asking for a raise or changing jobs. It’s a matter of reducing the cost of working: you may be able to reduce your costs by making a lunch at home, carpooling or maintaining a smaller wardrobe.

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