Q: I have a pet peeve somewhat related to your recent discussions about candidates being asked their salary history. During my recent job search, I repeatedly saw during the screening and interview process an unwillingness by some companies to share salary details upfront. They asked my salary expectations, interviewed me multiple times, gave me tests/assessments but were coy about their compensation package. Then after months of this, and they finally made the offer, it wasn’t even close to acceptable. I could’ve saved everyone’s time if they’d been upfront. Why do this?

A: Needless to say, this is not a “best-practice” in hiring. And I’d say that most respected companies with a well founded selection process wouldn’t engage in what I consider a borderline unethical hiring practice.

Generally, I’ve seen this game played –in varying degrees, in a couple of scenarios. First, is one where the company hires and churns through lots of sales people, and the practice is applied mostly to sales jobs.

The rationale is to make vague promises to applicants about a potentially lucrative position, “for the right individual”, with the right aptitudes (thus the tests/assessments). They keep the candidate interested with continued contacts but few specifics on compensation. Then once the applicant has invested considerable time and effort in the process they present an offer that is itself a sales pitch which goes something like this: “Yes, this is a smaller salary base than you expected but when you add the unlimited potential of our commission plan it’s so much more!”.

By then, there are candidates that will take the deal, either because they already invested so much time and effort, or they’ve developed a relationship with the company, or because they may not have other prospects. Not exactly the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

The second scenario I’ve seen this played out is when there’s a head-hunter involved.

Since most headhunters are paid by the company, they’ll have an incentive to keep you interested and eventually will make a similar sales pitch as above; knowing the job won’t pay as much as you want, but hoping they can sell you on the often exaggerated earning potential.

That’s why and how it’s done. Well respected companies don’t play these games. When you recognize it happening, you’d do well to walk away.

©Copyright Eva Del Rio

Eva Del Rio is creator of HR Box™ – tools for small businesses and startups. Send questions to Eva@evadelrio.com