Since I'm on my way out the door ...
Here's a good exercise for you if you are still an employee after this round of the annual Hunger Games. Ask your manager what your CR is (unless you already know it). If they won't tell you then run. That's information they should freely share with you. For those that don't know CR is your Compensation Ratio. It is the Ratio of your current salary to the midpoint for the salary range for your region for your grade. So if you are a GL8 and the Midpoint for your regions is $100,000 and you are making $85,000 your CR is .85 if you are making $110,000 your CR is 1.1.
If you are below 1.0 you are massively underpaid.
I can tell you with absolute certainty that many college hires are being brought in at very high comp ratios. I had a new college hire with a CS Masters brought in at a GL6 1.1 comp ratio. This was very normal for new college hires. This college hire was making more than 3 people on my team: one with 4 years of exp at a GL8, one with 2.5 years at a GL6 and one with 8 years at GL 8. I lived in fear that they would be talking at lunch and figure out how underpaid they were and all walk out the door.
The simple reason for this is 4-8 years ago the economy s---ed and college hires got a lot less money. Now the economy is hot and to get the college hires you have to pay through the nose. But those that got hired at that low rate haven't seen the raises to account for the market.
Nothing against the college hire but I'd trade every one of them for this person based on their massive experience advantage.
And to stave off the questions, I couldn't give them more money because there was never budget to do so.