Simply not true at my company. And to be honest, you would not want to work at a company that practiced that method of hiring. Because even if you wrangled a higher starting salary out of them, they would keep that salary stagnant until you got frustrated and quit for another job. Who wants to deal with that?
Smart companies know that hiring on the cheap is actually more expensive over the long term than hiring quality people at higher wages. When I hire people, it's not for a job but for a career. The average tenure in my department is nearly 25 years. People are hired and they stay because we pay well and we have plenty of incentives (bonuses) for exceptional work.
Why wouldn't set a wage for the job BEFORE the interview process begins?
Because even if you wrangled a higher starting salary out of them, they would keep that salary stagnant until you got frustrated and quit for another job.
Now this is rich. I should ask for a low starting salary so I can get a raise to eventually get what I would have started with? Do you really expect ANYONE to buy that? Really? Are you a comedian?
This is what gives capitalism a bad name.