The first time I got a job that required me to keep mum on my salary, I immediately thought it was just another way for the man to keep me down. I mean, what’s the big deal? Everybody should be paid fairly, so there shouldn’t be anything to hide, right? Um, wrong.
First of all, if we’ve learned anything here at STA, things are never really “fair”. That’s not to say that they’re “unfair”, but fair is a subjective term. And when it comes to salaries, there are oodles of variables that complicate situations. For example, you may have been hired during a peak performance period so the company had a little more money to throw around. A co-worker who was hired six months later might be a victim of belt-tightening measures. Conversely, someone who was at the company before you might be paid less than your hiring salary. That’s not information you want to share. Besides, they might not be getting the salary you are, but you might not get the bonus they do.
A good example of a common mess that comes from sharing salary info involved a friend of mine who was hired at a great internet company. She had to go through a lengthy interview and evaluation period even though it was for a semi-entry level position. She realized that if they were willing to hire a recruiter and go through such a complicated process, she was probably bringing something of real value to the company. So, like any smart working girl, she negotiated a salary that was a significant jump from her previous salary. Rock on. A few weeks into her job, she was talking to a coworker-pal and she innocently told them what she was getting paid. Her coworker, who had been there for a few months longer than her and was in a higher position, wasn’t getting paid as much as she was. Talk about awkward. My friend felt terrible, and her coworker felt cheated.
A worse-case scenario involved another friend of mine who was working for a law firm. She had done her time, made her way up and was getting paid a very nice salary. Somehow everyone’s salary info got out and one of the other lawyers decided to try to use my friend’s salary as leverage in getting a raise. This person went into the managing partner’s office and demanded a raise, using my friend’s salary as an example of what they should be getting paid. Unfortunately, it backfired. The managing partner decided to not only deny this person the raise, but to dock my friend’s salary so that nobody would have anything to complain about.
The thing about salaries is that you’re never privy to why the powers that be pay people what they do. If they’re looking to invest in someone, they’re going to pay them more. If they’re the boss’s kid, they’re going to pay them a lot more. If you don’t have experience, they’re going to pay you less. It’s not personal (though if you don’t speak up, you will get taken advantage of – but we’ll get to that later). The best thing when it comes to salary is to keep it between you and the people who make decisions. You’ll rake in the big bucks later and, in the meantime, you’ll avoid calamities like getting someone else’s salary decreased.