Sad math (HSAA Salary edition)

I’m a glutton for punishment so I did some sad math.

I started with AHS in 2017. I have been employed 8 years (step 1 to step 8).

Adjusting for inflation, I have received a 3% raise (or 0.4% a year) in exchange for my service and the almost decade of increased expertise. What are we even doing here?!