Why Do Employers Ask About Salary History

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There is so much to concern yourself with when it comes to the interview for a prospective job: appearance, skills, answers, mannerisms, and follow up. Then, there’s the pesky questions that asks about your salary history. While the rest of this interview protocol is expected at an interview, you may well be wondering why do employers ask about your salary history? It seems an unfair question, as you want to make more than you did in a past position-and perhaps, you were way underpaid in that position. By saying a much higher range for an expected salary, the potential employer may automatically discount you from the position. So, why do they ask, and what should you say?

Qualified
One of the most central reasons that a potential employer may ask about your salary history-even before offering you the position-is to gain a sense of your qualifications. Though it is not always so, most often a person will be paid according to their experience and skills in their chosen line of work. By telling them what you have made in the past, this number allows them to decide if you are actually in the right qualification range as other candidates.

Expectations
Potential employers also use a salary history to best gauge what salary range you may be expecting. They can use this information, in turn, to make an offer if/when the time comes and they have decided to make you an offer. It also tells them if you are too expensive to hire, and if so, cancels you out from the hiring process-unless they can make a case for your hiring.

Best Answer
So, while the question is a pesky one, and it will most certainly come up more often than not; do your best not to sigh in contempt or anxiety; and choose one of the following means of answering the question.

1. Give a salary range: One of the best ways to not commit to a number and either price yourself below or above their intended range to give them a range. This could be the span of $20K, but by doing so, they will have some idea what numbers to work with; if they decide to make you an offer.
2. Tell them you’re flexible: Tell them that you are flexible, and will be willing to consider their offer once the offer is on the table.
3. Tell them the truth: Even if the number is considerably lower than what you are expecting at this position, tell them the truth. The information is easily found out. This said, tell them what you made and what you expect to make-but make sure to tell them all the factors that make this new number so valid. Whether it be because promotions were frozen at your previous company for the space of a year or two, that you gained more skills and training in your field, etc-whatever it may be that makes you deserving of that new salary value.