[chollida1]

Really, I've never given someone a salary bump just because they asked and then shut up. That's a horrible way for a business to run.

I'll offer a competitive salaray that fits within my companies budget and salary framework. If an employee really wants more then the burden is on them to show that they've got a better BATNA.

I do agree with you that asking never hurts, but if a company caves just because you ask it's a very telling sign that whoever you talked to doesn't really know how to negotiate.