I recently gave a professional reference for a person I supervised about 7 or 8 years ago. The person asked me typical questions about performance and reliability and I was happy to give my stamp of approval. This reference check went south when I was asked how much the person that I was providing a reference for made during the time I worked with her.

How would I know this information? I was not in HR. I did not know everyone’s salary. Also, this was 8 years ago. We would hope that a potential employer wouldn’t base what they were offering on a salary from that long ago. That was a whole other world! Remember? Before COVID, before inflation - seems like a fairytale… But I digress.

I gave the hiring manager a number I thought would be around what the person made. After the call, I immediately texted the person that I provided a reference for and explained why I had major red flags.

I had a feeling they were going to lowball her. There is no other reason a potential employer would ask a reference how much they made 8 years ago. Sure, you can argue, for retention purposes, it is unwise for an employer to hire someone at a lower pay range than they had previously. Some believe this may cause a person to quit for a higher-paying job, but there are other ways to improve retention rates of new hires without getting into a person’s income history. Paying people fairly is one of them! It’s hard to identify strong arguments for employers to know this information but feel free to leave a comment below if I’m missing something. Also, I have coached many folks through stepping down to a lower-stress, lower-paying role. Money doesn’t motivate everyone the same way.

Another practice is to ask for the last salary, then offer a certain percentage over, with no room for negotiation. Even if the salary range is $60k – $100k (which is too much of a spread to begin with), you wouldn’t be able to negotiate for $90k if you make $65k at your current job. They would offer you $71,500 and that’s that. My biggest takeaway is that the new employer is now responsible for perpetuating salary inequities.

Also, there is legislation moving through the House relating to this topic. If passed, it will be a civil penalty for any employer to ask about salary from former employment. This is a good reason to get ahead of the game and remove these questions from the hiring process.

Lastly, I know you're waiting to know what happened with the reference check. She was offered the role and lowballed. She declined. All that time was wasted, including mine. Being upfront about hiring ranges and not basing a salary range on what someone made years ago would have prevented this. Be as transparent as possible through the hiring process. Your time is precious!!