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Topic: salary
| Author | Message |
| presspass | Posted – 2/12/2007 3:57:02 PM | show profile | email poster Hi - I'm wondering what the rule of thumb is regarding salary talks. When you are at a job interview and they ask how much you want to make or how much you currently make, what is the best response? Thanks. |
| Cyrus | Posted – 2/12/2007 4:01:05 PM | show profile It's a delicate balance. My first response to this question is always to make an effort to avoid showing your "cards" first. Ask them how much they have in mind and see what they say. If they press you, make sure you've done research and tell them how much you're looking for. If they ask you how much you make, in reality it's because they're just trying to see if your present company is getting a bargain and if they can extend it. Your responsibility to yourself is to make sure you're getting what you feel is a fair salary, so say what you have in mind. Nobody's going to find out what you're making now because companies don't give that out and a person's salary isn't listed on credit reports or any publicly available information since the only reliable sources of current pay are: check stubs, tax records and Social Security earning reports. None of those are made available to prospective employers. ------ Cyrus Afzali Astoria Communications www.astoriacomm.com |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 2/13/2007 1:11:50 AM | show profile People have different philosophies about this. Some try to get them to say a salary range. Others put off talk of salary ("I need more details about the job"), trying to get the company to want them before bringing up money. Others simply say what salary they want. Some tell their current salary. Some lie. Some say, "I am happy to talk about the compensation I am looking for, but I don't talk about my personal financial information, as I'm sure you can understand." The course you choose depends not so much on what's best or worst, but on your personality and how much you want/need the job. |
| orchard-65 | Posted – 2/13/2007 2:44:56 PM | show profile salary I have had some places ask for a salary history, which I don't like at all. Are they going to pay me based on what I have been paid in the past? Doesn't seem fair or reasonable. I also don't like the "name a salary" questions either. An employer should be upfront with what they are willing to pay for the job. If you want the job then apply and see if you can negotiate. If you look on all the job posting sites it is rare for an employer to post what they would like to pay. |
| presspass | Posted – 2/13/2007 2:47:43 PM | show profile Thanks for this great feedback. I'm wondering also - for job listings where it says you must give salary requirements - what do you do then? |
| orchard-65 | Posted – 2/13/2007 2:55:35 PM | show profile I give them what I want to make and just leave it there. Basically, if they feel it is too much and I really want the job I could say that I would be willing to work for less. On the other hand if they accept very quickly then if offered the job I can negotiate to raise the salary or for more perks. |
| foodlit | Posted – 2/15/2007 2:07:37 PM | show profile Almost all companies will ask for current salary information. If you refuse to provide it, you could knock yourself out of the running. This is a standard question, and it is just one piece of information that a company uses to determine what to offer you. They also look at your years of experience, and how it relates to the job you are applying for and then they look at internal equity, meaning what do people in their company make doing similar work and how does your salary stack up? Generally if you are paid a lot more than they pay their people, you won't get much of a bump if at all, but if they are paid a lot more than you, it can work in your favor and you'll get a bigger increase. When you are asked how much you want to make, it's best to ask them for more information, such as I'm flexible, what is the range for the position? Then if they press you, mention a range rather than a set number, but make sure the bottom number of the range you mention is something you'd be happy with, because frankly, when they hear the range, that's the number that stands out.... kind of like when they tell you a range, it's the highest number than stands out. :) Pam |
| AWC | Posted – 2/15/2007 4:14:52 PM | show profile These days most all employers ask about salary up front. And in truth, there is very little you can do to dance around the subject. If you fail to be forthcoming about your salary expectations, you may just be eliminated from serious consideration. I've asked a few HR professionals about this subject -- they say that for most reputable employers, the up-front salary question is merely a way to weed out people with wildly unrealistic salary demands. At larger companies, salaries for low- and mid-level positions are usually more or less set before the job is posted, so the up-front salary question shouldn't be seen as a negotiating tactic to lowball job candidates. |
| foodlit | Posted – 2/15/2007 4:45:17 PM | show profile AWC is correct....and I probably should have mentioned in my previous response that I am one of those HR people...I've worked on both sides for many years, as a headhunter, and currently in corporate HR. :) Pam |
| kdone | Posted – 2/17/2007 5:30:39 PM | show profile If I'm asked (or am putting it in a letter), I say that I am flexible about salary but consider X a reasonable starting point. And I always use a range for the starting point. Of course, some people are less flexible than others depending on needs, (I had a friend who refused to say she was willing to negotiate because she needed a minimum to pay her rent and didn't even want to be bothered with a interview when the job paid less). However, I think it is still worth saying......if the job doesn't work out it is still a contact. |
| Iwillwriteforfood | Posted – 2/23/2007 3:12:26 PM | show profile I've always heard the first to bring up a figure, loses. |
| gisellek23 | Posted – 11/22/2007 1:20:07 AM | show profile | email poster salary I recently had a prospective employer ask me for recent check stubs. Can you refuse? because quite frankly, I dont think that all that information has any relevance to how well I am suited for that position, assuming that they have performed a background check. |
| foodlit | Posted – 11/22/2007 8:18:06 AM | show profile You can certainly refuse, but know that you risk losing that opportunity if it is a company policy that they verify salary. I don't agree with it, unless it is a sales position where you are proving your production. For any other position that isn't revenue/commission driven, I think it's obnoxious and invasive. |
| jkdscribe | Posted – 11/22/2007 2:33:43 PM | show profile I've wondered about this too (just started a similar thread actually) and I'm interested to hear what people have to say this: When do you first start talking money. With this last job I got, the interview went great, and they kept asking me if I had any more questions for them. (One thing I've learned when applying any job but ESPECIALLY journalism jobs is to come to an interview with a ton or ready questions, since that's the job after all.) I thought it would be tacky to bring money up right away--they said they had a lot of other people to talk to anyway--and I didn't want to ruin the momentum I'd already built up. So...when's a good time to discuss money? (I should also mention that whe they called me to offer the job--when I happened to be off getting married--they asked me if X was okay. I said hell yes, since i was getting married and needed the job. In retrospect, maybe should have played it cool.) |
| writesonwater | Posted – 11/22/2007 4:10:50 PM | show profile Generally I don't bring up money early in the interview -- but most will bring it up by the end. When asked what I currently make, I have used this answer: with my current responsibilities, I make IN THE 40s. (It was barely40, and I was hoping for more.) They didn't seem to feel this was being too coy. When they've brought up a range first, "between $43k and $48k" -- I have said "That's within my range" which seemed to leave the door open for putting me at the top of that scale without looking too desperate . |
| Marie | Posted – 11/23/2007 11:58:15 PM | show profile I didn't read through all these posts, but in my long experience, the best companies don't bring up salary too quickly, because they know that their initial offer is fair and consistent with the market (and it usually is). When salary is a big deal in the initial interview, they're likely looking to lowball you. My strategy is to get them to go first (you ask for an idea of the range), and then you just nod your head, even if you think it's low. This works for me, and I've been in the business a long time. I always leave the current salary blank on an application, and it hasn't hurt me. Revealing too much will likely get you lowballed. This has been my experience. And when you get an offer, always negotiate for more. You might not get it, but you need to try. I also disagree with the internal equity thing, because other people in the job or even above you may have come in many years before at a lower salary. I work for a major, major media company, and internal equity means nothing. I make more than several in "better" positions, and it's only because I came in later and asked for more above the initial offer. |
| Marie | Posted – 11/24/2007 12:00:45 AM | show profile And HR rarely has the final say on salaries, or much else, anyway. If a dept, manager wants you, they'll get you the salary you want, within reason. |
| foodlit | Posted – 11/24/2007 3:58:29 PM | show profile As an fyi, HR doesn't make the salary decisions. Any salary offer that comes through HR comes per what the manager dictates. If it was up to hr (me) I'd give higher offers to all! :) |
| Marie | Posted – 11/24/2007 4:59:21 PM | show profile My point was that it's the manager that has the authority to raise the salary, not HR. And many a manager will do this for a valuable candidate, within the bounds of reason. So again, while my point was that HR might specify a certain salary, it's just repeating what the department manager has set so far. If the manager wants to offer you more, he or she can and will. That decision is not HR's. |
| questoo1 | Posted – 11/24/2007 7:56:10 PM | show profile In the case of my company, salaries are determined by the buisness/finance managers, not the actual hiring managers. In fact, hr is closer to these people then the actual hiring managers as they work with them more often and more closely hence yielding more influence. BTW, my company is currently considered the # 1 company in the world to work for (I mention that in the context that when others are giving advice, not a great idea to speak in absolutes). Every company and situation is different and like poker, you never know until you see who blinks first |
| Marie | Posted – 11/24/2007 9:06:42 PM | show profile In my company, it's the hiring manger who gets approval from the finance people for a certain salary who then passes approval to the manager who then informs the applicant. HR is nothing but a paper pusher, is never the one to inform you that you have the job. HR doesn't even see you until the end. |
| foodlit | Posted – 11/26/2007 11:54:35 AM | show profile Marie, HR is different from recruiting in many companies, especially the larger ones. When I worked onsite at one of the companies largest banks, there were many different roles in hr, recruiters worked directly with the hiring managers, and hr dealt more with the employee relations and overall budgets for departments. Recruiters work hand in hand with the hiring manager and strategize on salary, and sometimes bump heads with hr who may have issues on the final number per dept budgets, and internal equity. But, the manager can usually push past that obstacle if they want it badly enough. I've never found anyone in HR to be just a paper pusher. While HR may not be actively involved in the interview/recruiting process, they are involved in the overall HR strategy. But, every company differs of course. |
| foodlit | Posted – 11/26/2007 11:56:10 AM | show profile oops, that should have read "one of the countries largest banks." |
