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Tacky to inquire about salary before interview?
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 8:55 am
Posting anon because I’ve asked a lot of friends about this.

I am looking to hire for 2 positions, both of which I’ve posted about a lot on facebook. One of them is for my boss, I am just helping him. The other is for something that I direct but dont set the salary for - boss does. People keep asking about the salary before anything else. And with horrible grammar - even for facebook. Its a turn off? Like a single word post - “salary”? I have never ever inquired about pay until an interview. I was taught that its tacky! And the boss agrees. He wont allow me to discuss pay until an interview.

Some friends have told me that this is normal - people dont want to waste their time. Other friends agree that this is tacky. Is it a sign of changing times?

Most people wont send a resume or set up an interview without discussing pay. Truth is, it pays very little (way more than minimum wage though, and is consistant with what the job pays in other places. We've checked) and is a passion driven job, helpful for pocket money. Its very very part time - a few hours a week - and the other job is 20/week (pays more than the passion driven job). I dont think I want to hire the people who are replying rudely to my post. Is that how you would talk to a prospective boss? I would never!

Thoughts?
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mommy3b2c




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 9:02 am
I think it might be okay to politely ask a range for the salary, but I agree it is incredibly rude to write one word-:

salary?

I see something similar in my business. Often, when I post pictures of merchandise, people respond with one word- price????

It always seems incredibly rude to me. It just rubs me the wrong way. Is it so hard to write- "how much does this cost?"
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amother
Teal


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 9:09 am
Salary should be alluded to in the job posting. Salary is a key factor for most people when seeking employment. If the pay is competitive (consistent in the market place) the posting should say something along those lines. You don't need to post an exact figure.

That said, when people post "salary?" that is rude.
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simba




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 9:19 am
I would like to know what the salary range is before I go for an interview. Wont waste my time if it is below what I am willing to work for.
Asking in one word is tricky as you are posting these jobs on social media and the lingo that is there is different then in a proper email conversation.
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HonesttoGod




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:11 am
Firstly if you are posting on facebook - it is a social media website, "salary" goes along with the 'mood' of the location of the post.
To prevent this I would say to either write "salary will be discussed at interview" or "pay based on experience" or such in your post.

I know that I hated having to wait until the interview to even hear about what sort of pay I was looking at. It means I hadto go through with everything to find out the pay wasn't anywhere near what I was looking for or in the range of what I needed. The posts that included some idea of what the salary would be (either based on experience or tbd etc) were more hopeful because I had some sort of idea.
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:46 pm
HonesttoGod wrote:
Firstly if you are posting on facebook - it is a social media website, "salary" goes along with the 'mood' of the location of the post.
To prevent this I would say to either write "salary will be discussed at interview" or "pay based on experience" or such in your post.

I know that I hated having to wait until the interview to even hear about what sort of pay I was looking at. It means I hadto go through with everything to find out the pay wasn't anywhere near what I was looking for or in the range of what I needed. The posts that included some idea of what the salary would be (either based on experience or tbd etc) were more hopeful because I had some sort of idea.

Thanks. For the smaller job, its not pay based on experince, thats not typical for this kind of small job. It is inline with what the going rate is in the area. I wish I could say what the pay is.
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amother
Teal


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:53 pm
amother wrote:
Thanks. For the smaller job, its not pay based on experince, thats not typical for this kind of small job. It is inline with what the going rate is in the area. I wish I could say what the pay is.


You don't need to write pay commiserate with experience. "Competitive salary", or "competitive pay" is what you can say, if that's accurate. If I read that - and I was interested in doing the job that was advertised - I think it would be reasonable for me to contact the employer and say something like - My expectations for a job like this would be $X to $Y per hour based on the market - is that around what you were thinking?
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amother
Gray


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:56 pm
mommy3b2c wrote:
I think it might be okay to politely ask a range for the salary, but I agree it is incredibly rude to write one word-:


I agree. If you don't mention salary range in your ad, it's quite normal for a prospective interviewee to inquire. It will save them - and you - from wasting time. If the salary is too low, they aren't going to bother coming in. If it's higher than they had in mind, it might be an indication to them that you are looking for someone with higher qualifications/ more experience than they bring to the table.

The one word response though... it bothers me. I can't help but feel it's lazy/ crude/ unprofessional.
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:57 pm
simba wrote:
I would like to know what the salary range is before I go for an interview. Wont waste my time if it is below what I am willing to work for.
Asking in one word is tricky as you are posting these jobs on social media and the lingo that is there is different then in a proper email conversation.

Is this generational? I am mid 30s. My husband, boss, and boss for this job all say that they have never once done this, they agree it gives a bad first impression. To ask even before saying hi? Bad manners. No?
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amother
Gray


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:07 pm
amother wrote:
Is this generational? I am mid 30s. My husband, boss, and boss for this job all say that they have never once done this, they agree it gives a bad first impression. To ask even before saying hi? Bad manners. No?


I was an HR manager for almost 10 years. I placed a lot of ads and interviewed a lot of people. Almost always a salary range was posted in my ads. On the rare occasion that (for whatever reason) I did not include any salary info, almost always this was the first question asked.

I cannot understand why on earth anyone would think it gives a bad first impression. People mostly take jobs to earn a living. Salary matters. Time is valuable. Employees' and employers'. Why waste either's time when it's clear it wont be a match right away based on salary?

As to whether it's generational? I don't know. I'm 45 if that helps.
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InnerMe




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:08 pm
amother wrote:
Posting anon because I’ve asked a lot of friends about this.

I am looking to hire for 2 positions, both of which I’ve posted about a lot on facebook. One of them is for my boss, I am just helping him. The other is for something that I direct but dont set the salary for - boss does. People keep asking about the salary before anything else. And with horrible grammar - even for facebook. Its a turn off? Like a single word post - “salary”? I have never ever inquired about pay until an interview. I was taught that its tacky! And the boss agrees. He wont allow me to discuss pay until an interview.

Some friends have told me that this is normal - people dont want to waste their time. Other friends agree that this is tacky. Is it a sign of changing times?

Most people wont send a resume or set up an interview without discussing pay. Truth is, it pays very little (way more than minimum wage though, and is consistant with what the job pays in other places. We've checked) and is a passion driven job, helpful for pocket money. Its very very part time - a few hours a week - and the other job is 20/week (pays more than the passion driven job). I dont think I want to hire the people who are replying rudely to my post. Is that how you would talk to a prospective boss? I would never!

Thoughts?


I think it's acceptable to ask about the pay beforehand, and I actually think that employers should provide a general idea of expected pay. Otherwise why waste someone's time, and yours?

It is incredibly annoying to make the effort to come to an interview- and then find out that the pay is a lot less then your looking for. That's why if the potential employer does not provide- then ask. Besides as the one hiring- don't you think it would save you time as well? Do you have the time to interview a lot of people only to be told that pay is too little.
So advice for you is: Be specific. Say what you are looking for. What you are willing to pay. No exact amount necessary. If asked, please give an answer. By being specific you allow yourself to be busy with people who can possibly be a good match.

Regarding your question about the rudeness of asking 'salary?'. I do think that's not polite, and abrupt. It would be decent and reasonable to expect people to take the time and type a full sentence...But as other posters noted if your posting on social media- many times that's the tone, and atmosphere.
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InnerMe




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:13 pm
amother wrote:
I was an HR manager for almost 10 years. I placed a lot of ads and interviewed a lot of people. Almost always a salary range was posted in my ads. On the rare occasion that (for whatever reason) I did not include any salary info, almost always this was the first question asked.

I cannot understand why on earth anyone would think it gives a bad first impression. People mostly take jobs to earn a living. Salary matters. Time is valuable. Employees' and employers'. Why waste either's time when it's clear it wont be a match right away based on salary?

As to whether it's generational? I don't know. I'm 45 if that helps.


This.
I cannot comprehend what is gained by keeping pay "secret."
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:15 pm
Thanks for the input. Its very frustrating for me because for the super part time, few hours/week, I cant set the pay, so I cant tell people what it is. For the other one, More substantial hours, I am just helping and I literally have no idea what it is.
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:39 pm
InnerMe wrote:
This.
I cannot comprehend what is gained by keeping pay "secret."

My boss wont let me discuss pay. What can I do?
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SixOfWands




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:47 pm
amother wrote:
My boss wont let me discuss pay. What can I do?


You can explain to him that you are likely to waste substantial resources, not to mention goodwill, in interviewing people for a position that does not meet their salary requirements.

I'm also curious as to how you are advertising the position through Facebook. Is it through a business or professional page, or is it through your personal page. If the latter, then I understand the more casual question ("Salary?"), as its inline with usual responses.

Finally, yes, most people do want an idea of salary before applying for a job.
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amother
Teal


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:48 pm
amother wrote:
Thanks for the input. Its very frustrating for me because for the super part time, few hours/week, I cant set the pay, so I cant tell people what it is. For the other one, More substantial hours, I am just helping and I literally have no idea what it is.


this super part time a few hours per week sounds like a consultant contract job rather than a salaried position. I would talk to the boss about that - and then reframe the posting. So there is no 'salary' rather you are paying someone based on their rate. Flip the question around. someone asks about pay - ask them what their rate is - and if its to high, apologize and say that the rate is outside of the range the company has budgeted..
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amother
Aquamarine


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:58 pm
amother wrote:
this super part time a few hours per week sounds like a consultant contract job rather than a salaried position. I would talk to the boss about that - and then reframe the posting. So there is no 'salary' rather you are paying someone based on their rate. Flip the question around. someone asks about pay - ask them what their rate is - and if its to high, apologize and say that the rate is outside of the range the company has budgeted..

Its not contracted. I’d say what it is, but I dont want to out myself, if any applicants are on here.

Second bold - I’ve done that before and the boss wasn't happy.
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nicole81




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 2:04 pm
amother wrote:
Is this generational? I am mid 30s. My husband, boss, and boss for this job all say that they have never once done this, they agree it gives a bad first impression. To ask even before saying hi? Bad manners. No?


Maybe it is. I'm around the same age as you, and I think that even if something is on social media, if it is regarding a professional opportunity, there needs to be a level of professionalism in the communications.

I must be an old fogey though because I don't even like it when acquaintances message me one word questions in response to texts, post, chats, etc. and I generally don't merit them with a response. I think it's rude no matter what the context.
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amother
Teal


 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 2:10 pm
amother wrote:
Its not contracted. I’d say what it is, but I dont want to out myself, if any applicants are on here.

Second bold - I’ve done that before and the boss wasn't happy.


well sounds like your boss is living under an old paradigm.

I would just tell him that withholding salary ranges from interested applicants is resulting in very few (if any?) serious applicants.

If he is looking for someone who wants the job just for the love of the job - you should look for a volunteer.
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MagentaYenta




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Oct 23 2017, 2:18 pm
I cannot imagine applying for a job without knowing the salary or salary range. That information tells me a lot about the job and the employer. Why waste the time applying and potentially interviewing for a position when you don't know what it pays? One of the things it tells me about an employer is they don't mind wasting time and money on fruitless recruitments and interviews.
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