Postdoc pay

[BrandonVt at aol.com]

Hi,

I hope I can get some information and advice that will help 
keep another woman scientist in the pipeline.

I switched fields after I completed my PhD from an 
agricultural related field to human genetics.  While I really
enjoy the work I am doing in my postdoc, I was dismayed to
learn the salary I would be paid compared to what I would have 
expected as postdoc had I not changed fields.  I currently earn
$20,000 per  year with a benefits package that costs me $100
per month for health insurance.    This is at a major urban university in the
Northeastern US.  In the department I left at Cornell University, an incoming
postdoc could earn $26,000/year  with complete health insurance coverage.
 Postdocs with the US Dept. of Agriculture start at about $33,000.  My boss
assured me that the $20,000 I was offered was a competitve salary but being
new to the field I have no contacts and no way to verify this.  We are fairly
isolated in our lab and I have not met other postdocs to compare notes with.
 I hope I can get some feedback from other postdocs or scientists that hire
them as to what is a reasonable postdoc salary. 
I hope to in the future secure my own funding but realize that this will take
a year at the minimum and would like to get a feel for my position in the
meantime.  Thanks for your input.
                                                      Tina