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If a company asks for a salary history in the job advertisement, I don't
apply for it. If it asks for one in an application when I go in for an
interview, I leave that space blank, even though I am sure that means
they won't hire me.
My father, who was a VP for a large company, told me years ago never to
provide a salary history. I agree the main purpose for it is to lowball
the salary as much as possible or to rule out a prospective employee who
has been paid better under the assumption that the person won't be happy
in a lower-paying job.
Kay
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+kay -dot- robart=tea -dot- state -dot- tx -dot- us -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
[mailto:techwr-l-bounces+kay -dot- robart=tea -dot- state -dot- tx -dot- us -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com]
On Behalf Of Pinkham, Jim
Sent: Wednesday, October 27, 2010 9:55 AM
To: Gene Kim-Eng; David Neeley; techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: RE: Rates
And I agree with the other poster on the salary history: I tell them my
past employers have required that my compensation be kept confidential.
The compensation for the job for which I'm applying is negotiable.
The salary history question is one I see as quite heavily skewed to an
applicant's disadvantage. It's a great tool for lowballing if, for
whatever reasons, the compensation was lower at a past post. On the
other hand, it may be a tool for exclusion when a employer looks at past
history and believes it cannot afford the writer. Perhaps the candidate
will accept a lower pay for a variety of reasons (less cost of living,
tough economy, willing to negotiate the total package and make some
salary trade-offs). Fundamentally, it doesn't really address the core
question of how much that prospective employee is worth to that employer
in the context in which the job is open.
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