Should You Tell Recruiter Your Current Salary?

“How much is your current salary?” This is a foremost question a recruiter will ask during a job interview. Current salary and salary expectations are one of the first questions recruiters ask candidates because it is a piece of crucial information in a recruiting process. By knowing how much your current salary is, a recruiter will be able to decide better about your future wage in a company.

So, should you really reveal your current salary?

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The answer is yes and no. It depends entirely on how much pay you want to earn in the future. For example, if your current salary is too low and you feel that you are worth much more and your skills will add a greater advantage to company, revealing your current salary might prevent you from getting better income. This is because employers usually take advantage of your previous salary information to pay you on the same or little higher range.

On the other hand, if your current salary is high and even bigger than the company could pay, you might be at the edge of being rejected. Since the company might not be able to pay a high range of salary for the position, commonly, the best way employers often choose is to turn down the talents’ candidacy altogether.

What should you do, then?

Obviously, lying about your current salary will only harm your chances of landing a job. It works the same as disclosing your salary to the recruiter. However, there are some exceptions to when you can share your current salary.

1.  You can reveal your salary if you think that answering the question will help you get a better job.

2.  You can disclose your salary if you trust the recruiter that he will not judge you based on your current salary.

3.  You can tell a recruiter your current wage if there is a financial plan from the company that decides limitation of paid salary to be given to employees within an organisation.

You should keep in mind that in every process, honesty is valued the most. Therefore, being honest with your current salary will improve your value on the recruiter’s eyes. But if you think that your current salary will close your opportunity from getting a better wage, you can tell the employer your expected salary range, instead.

If the employer keeps asking your current salary when you do not really want to tell him, you can avoid the question by answering like this instead: “Based on my experience and research of position with a similar level of responsibility, I am seeking a salary range of $10.000 to $20.000 (for example)”. You can also respond to the employer that your salary information is something you only share with your accountant. In addition, you should acknowledge that salary history should not equate your future earnings. Therefore, before the job interview and to prepare yourself for the question, you can seek an answer about how much the position you apply earns.

“You don’t need to divulge your salary information unless you want to. It is okay if you do but make sure that sharing your past earnings doesn’t hurt your future earnings.” – Student Loan Hero

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