Asking about previous salary – ok or not ok?

Employers often ask about current salary as part of their negotiations, and it strikes me as pretty much the only time where this happens in a business deal. We don’t typically ask a plumber or accountant what their last client paid, do we? Yet when we hire a plumber or accountant, pretty much the rest of the process aligns – – do research – work out budget (like setting a rem range) – create shortlist – conduct interview – nut out expectations – take references I’m not convinced it’s a good idea to ask about the previous salary in Talent Acquisition, and here’s why. We’ve priced the role – set a rem range based on market research. We’ve set expectations of a fair exchange – “to get X reward, you’ll need to deliver Y result.” Then we ask them their previous salary and that influences our price – but not our expectations. Getting a candidate to accept an offer that is up from their previous salary but down from our price point is a false win/win – it’s not going to build trust, without which you’re unlikely to get out-performance. What’s worth more? the deal or the performance? Price the job, not the person! >>> Have your say!