Obtaining Equal Pay as a Job Applicant
When it comes to obtaining equal pay, you are closer to the driver’s seat than you realize. You need to learn the legal rules so you can navigate your employer in the right direction.
Use the law to drive the offer.
There are two important rights you need to know when it comes to navigating your pay during a job offer, and I am excited to share them with you in this article today. These will help you whether you’re just entering the workforce or looking for the next spot. The law provides these rights to help you get paid more. So use them.
Right #1: Questions about Prior Salary History is Prohibited
First, do not provide your prior salary history. In California, a prospective employer is prohibited from asking job applicants about their salary history.
The purpose of salary history bans is to prevent a cycle of discrimination. Employers will use your prior pay as a starting point to determine their offer. If there’s already a pay disparity, you’ll have a hard time getting rid of it if it continues to drive the offer.
If you’re ever asked about prior pay, say you are uncomfortable sharing that information and you would rather focus on the value you can bring to the company. If you volunteer this information, the employer can consider this in determining salary. But, if you are hired and start performing substantially similar work to a male who is paid more than you, your prior salary cannot be used as a justification for any pay disparities. It’s a weird caveat, so just don’t give it up.
Don’t give away information that can put you at a disadvantage in your salary negotiations. Giving away prior salary information may only perpetuate pay discrimination from job to job. It’s already hard enough to avoid it, so don’t give them easy ammo to rely on.
You’ve earned the spot because of your worth, so you should be paid for it. And, in this labor market, you have the negotiating power.
What if they ask you for your salary expectations?
Well, there’s another legal right that will help in this scenario. Because you always want to get the offer first before you provide them with a desired number.
Right #2: You have the right to ask for a pay scale (i.e. salary or hourly wage range) after you’ve completed an initial interview… And they must provide it.
Here are a few tips in practice.
What if they ask me my prior salary and it doesn’t seem like they know that question is illegal?
“I don’t feel comfortable answering that question, especially with the new law regarding prior salary.”
“I am a little uncomfortable answering that question. I’d love to focus further on the value I can bring to the company and I still have some questions about ….”
“I’m not comfortable answering that question, and I think what’s important is what value I can provide to the company in this position. I would love to talk about the specific responsibilities of the position, and how I can add value…”
“This position is not exactly the same as my last job. I’d love to discuss what my specific responsibilities would be here to help me respond to any offers provided.”
“It sounds like I may be the right fit for you. If you have an offer, I would love to consider it. I do still have some questions about …”
What if they ask me what my salary expectations are before they provide an offer?
Don’t provide a number before they do. Instead, focus on whether you and the potential employer would be a mutual fit, whether you fill a need.
“If we're a good fit for each other, I’m sure we can come to an agreement on salary.”
“Before we talk about salary, I’d like to learn more about the role. Could you tell me more about …”
“I expect to be paid for the value I bring to the company, so I would love to hear more about the role and responsibilities[, and the typical pay scale for the position].”
“I don’t necessarily have a specific salary in mind, but would love to hear more about the role and responsibilities of the position, so I can understand the value I can bring to the position, and better assess whether and how I could be a good fit, and go from there.”
“I don’t have an expected salary set in stone in my mind, and would rather at this point focus on whether this position could be a mutual good fit, and then go from there. I would love to hear more about…”
If they continue to press, you can always deflect by just asking for the pay scale - it’s now your legal right: “What do you usually pay someone in this position? Can you provide the pay scale?” This law makes it much easier to deflect on any conversations about your salary expectations before you receive an offer.
Ultimately, you just need to keep deflecting and flip the script. Keep asking questions to learn more about the position, the expectations, and how the company values your background and skill set.
Once you get the offer, try to find out how they arrived at their number within the pay scale. How did they rate your background and skills? Get it in writing.
As always, do your homework. Ahead of time, research your target salary/range.
You can start with comparable job titles by comparing job descriptions, job duties and required education and experience.
Then find the matching salaries by using the job titles you’ve identified and review salary ranges for those titles on websites/resources, such as:
Glassdoor.com
Indeed.com
Payscale.com
Salary.com
Salaryexpert.com
Monster.com
TheLadders.com
Comparably.com
Careerbuilders.com
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
LinkedIn
Business publications or other publications specific to your industry
The local chamber of commerce
Industry compensation surveys
Robert half salary guides
Other salary guides within your industry
When providing a counter offer, calculate the value you bring to the company, focusing on your specific skill sets and experience. You’re in the best position to know and advocate for your worth.
Remember, when a potential employer picks you, they want you. They’ve gone through the tiring process of sifting through applications and interviewing and chose you as their number 1 pick. Be bold and assertive and know your worth. They see it too or you wouldn’t be number 1. This will be the time when you have the most negotiating power over your salary with your employer – right from the start. After you’re hired, while it’s never an easy process for your employer to go through the hiring process again, they now also know that it’s not easy for you to leave the job and go through your own process of applying for a new job. So set the bar high.
And another important note before closing out this topic: many prospective employers may not know these laws, so you may have to delicately educate them. Of course, you don’t want to start off on the wrong foot. But, I think a red flag should wave high in the sky for you if you do receive negative push back from day one. Is that the best place to build a career?
Whether you’re doing this on your own or with the help of the numerous resources out there on negotiating killer job offers, these two rights discussed in this article will help you gain an edge in the pay negotiations.
DISCLAIMER: this information is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice or seek to be the complete and comprehensive statement of the law, nor is it intended to address your specific requirements or provide advice on which reliance should be placed.