Men and women who do the same work are paid about the same, since profit-maximizing businesses don't want to overpay men. Women take breaks in their careers to raise families and differ from men in the kinds of jobs they want, which largely explains the pay differentials that do exist.
The salary negotiations between an employer and prospective employee are none of the state’s business.
And what about when the applicant says: “Sorry, that’s less than I’m making at my current job”? Is the company not allowed to counter?
If the answer is no, than that’s unfairly shackling the company. If the answer is yes, then that pretty much nullifies the intent of the law.
Either way, it’s just silly.
Believe it or not I’m in favor of this law. If an employer knows what you’re making, they will typically offer you no more than 10 percent more than that. If you’re under paid in your current job, yiu may have to change jobs a couple of times in order to make up the difference. This law makes the employer offer you market wages instead of just 10 percent more than you’re making now.
I remember the last minure a company asked for my pay stub from a previous employer after already making an offer. I told them to stuff it and took an even higher paying job. This was however during the good Bush years.
I think this is a great idea—your salary history is none of a new or prospective employer’s business. You are negotiating your future salary, not explaining your past salary. Fantastic.
In principle I have no problem with being upfront about the compensation range for a position. However, making such transparency a legal requirement simply discloses that the proponents have never been involved in hiring people. In 30 years as a business owner, I hired a hundred or so people. In numerous instances some candidates were interviewed because they appeared to have “potential” rather than a proven track record or the required qualifications. Any salary offer reflected that shortfall and risk.
Since employers are pretty savvy, I suspect they will simply widen the range of their salaries to reflect the possible range of candidate’s market value given their qualifications.
This law certainly would make job hopping less frequent. Low ball offers create high turnover. Sure I’ll take your crap offer and then use you for a paycheck and look for other employment full time on your dime.
You’re not wrong, but people don’t want to hear that, they’d like to have their cake and eat it too. I make less than the men I work with - but I have flexible hours and I can take time off whenever I want, and they cannot. Having that freedom is worth more than a few $ to me, and a lot of other women out there, and that’s what they don’t factor in..
When asked what my current salary is or what salary I am expecting I respond with “What were you expecting to pay?” That shuts them up.
Should be a national law.
So not to get all Howie Carr on everyone here on FR but I want to know who is going to enforce this.
You know, someone's brother inlaw gets a State Job and goes around checking into it.... And oh by the way gets a Full Sized Car or SUV with the Blue "Statee" Mass license plates. And they are all over the State for those of you that haven't ventured into the People's Republik, recently.
And oh yes, don't forget The State Pension....
I find this story baffling. I’ve never been asked about my current salary in a job interview.
HR is right down there with the MSM for most hated.
I wanted to hire myself for my business but I was to expensive. My business can’t afford me so I will continue to work for free just like many other small business owners.
I never gave a specific answer to those kind of questions. I always said that pay would be negotiated when I was actually offered the job
Yes, I know, from the frying pan into the fire!
Anyway, I can categorically state that there is no wage disparity between men and women. All our job titles come with a salary range (adjusted for geographical area) and make no distinction between gender, race or anything else.
Also, the contention that any reputable company would want to "lowball" a new hire by finding out what their current salary is and tying the offer to that is ridiculous when you think about it. The likely reason people apply to work at my company is that they want to better their current circumstances and further their career. The last thing we want to do is lowball our offers and bring people on board only to have them immediately seek higher paying work elsewhere once they find out what others are making in their position (and they will find out). The first 6 months of a typical new hire is mostly absorbed by training. We want these people to stay and make careers with us. So we pay competitive salaries commensurate with their skill levels.
Already our hiring practices are constrained by the government. We have to report on the amount of "minorities" we interview and then explain why we didn't hire them over some more qualified people. We want to be able to hire the best and brightest regardless of race and gender but government fights against that and tries to get us to take lesser qualified minorities at the expense of more qualified candidates. Once those minorities are hired, it is also much tougher to move them out if they don't work out.
I'm tired of the whole "minority" thing anyhow. Women are actually in the majority if you look at population statistics. I also think it's time to stop thinking of Asians, Hispanics and Blacks as "minorities" as they are well established in our nation and in very large numbers. In fact, Blacks have been here as long as White Europeans. Enough of the "minority" status already. Unless you personally came off the boat, you are an American. I don't care whether your parents, your grand-parents or your great-grandparents came off the boat.
If you were born here, you are an American and you are expected to speak good English and be just as qualified to obtain a job that you are qualified for as anybody else - and be paid the same salary range for that job as anybody else.
HR is the real problem. . .
https://jebkinnison.com/2016/08/10/death-by-hr-who-staffs-hr-departments-mostly-women/
This is one of those “toehold” laws that will inevitably be expanded with actual parameters around quantities and percentages. It’s a slippery-slope law. Ultimately, the government should have no say-so in a salary dealing between employer and employee.
Most companies forbid telling salaries yet they demand candidates do just that.