I recently interviewed for a job and they gave me the salary range early on in the process.

20 Comments

1. Lesa Edwards, Career Coach & Master Resume WriterSeptember 22,2021 at 1:56PM UTC

   In these types of situations, it is always best to go in with data - what is the going range for your role in your geographic area? What credentials, unique experiences, etc. do you bring to the job?

   My thought: By offering you the position, they are essentially saying you are the most qualified candidate. Therefore, you shouldn't be offered anything below the stated range - or even towards the bottom of the range.

2. Antonia CalzettiSeptember 22,2021 at 2:49PM UTC

   Pending what your comp range is, I would relay that to whomever you spoke telling them when you initially spoke with XXX, they mentioned the range was high 80s to 90s. You have every right to question the drop in salary. Don't ever settle on salary. Know your value.

3. Cassandra J FenykSeptember 23,2021 at 12:11PM UTC

   Ask them why they cannot go higher than 80K when you were told that the range for this position goes into the 90s. Then wait for an answer. Silence can be the best negotiating tool you have right now since they put their proverbial foot in their mouth.

4. منة الله مرادSeptember 23,2021 at 12:18PM UTC

   I agree with Antonia and Lesa, you should refer to the conversation you had previously and ask for an explanation.

5. Jessica Callahan SteeleSeptember 23,2021 at 12:28PM UTC

   As a recruiter, I would work directly with the recruiter and let them know that they informed you of the range. Ultimately, it's the hiring managers budget and there isn't much the recruiter can do, but they can go back and let the hiring manager know about the conversation. I have had to make offers lower than I liked because of hiring managers, but could get them to budge so that in the next year with a merit raise the person would be at the salery they wanted and offer a sign-on bonus to get them where they wanted for this current year.

6. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 12:30PM UTC

   I have not hired someone. Nor am I am HR official. I can only offer questions to consider.

   Salty depends upon many qualifications. Do you have specialized industry experience, any “bonus” or special certifications that could push you to the top of the range? I always thought the top of a range was for people who have a bonus skill. However, I may be “believing the marketing” that I have been told by past HR experiences.

7. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 12:50PM UTC

   I agree with the comments regarding negotiation of higher salary and asking why they listed the range to 90k if they were not going to pay it.
   That said, you say you worked for this company previously. Why did you leave?

8. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 1:16PM UTC

   I have had this happened to me. I was given a salary range and the offer was the bottom of that range. The company misled me and others in the ad and then also now on the interview. I also found out that the company misled with the job they were offering and it ended up not being the job they made it sound like it was. I decided that I wasn't going to deal with a company that misleads and, well, lies so blatantly. I would say you can ask them why they gave you the lowest range but you may not get an answer you like.

9. Sue Gordon- retired Career CoachSeptember 23,2021 at 1:25PM UTC

   If you feel you can walk from this, I would suggest you counter that this is just too low and different from what they led you to believe so unless they can change their stance you respectfully decline their offer.

10. Paulla Fetzek, MSEdSeptember 23,2021 at 2:04PM UTC

    I'm sorry Kristen that they won't budge on the salary. However, if they're giving you a range, it may be there are other qualifications that would put you at the higher end of the range. Have you done any salary comparisons (Glassdoor.com and Salary.com are both great ones) that show your salary should be higher? If so, then you have a right to walk away from this.

11. Maggie StoneSeptember 23,2021 at 2:53PM UTC

    No they shouldn’t base it off what you were making. CA put laws in place saying it was illegal to ask about prior salary.

    There may be some legitimate reasons for the discrepancy. Maybe the there was miscommunication between the company and the recruiter or the company looked at the budget and had to lower the offer. If there is other evidence that the company or recruiter misled you, politely decline the offer and move on. It doesn’t sound like there is room for negotiation, so if you are excited about the role, and you can live with 80k and you don’t see any other red flags, go for it

12. Focused721350September 23,2021 at 3:50PM UTC

    Good Morning,
    Go somewhere else. You worked for them before, Right! You should know how they are. I would NEVER work for salary...... Good Luck!!!!

13. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 4:57PM UTC

    Since you worked for them before, if you previous salary was about 80K (or 80K is just slightly higher than what you made before) then I would ask the explicit reason why they can't go above 80K. This does feel like a bait and switch but in the end you have to decide if it's really a dealbreaker for you or not.

14. Rosa GoesSeptember 23,2021 at 6:43PM UTC

    You can tell them given the role and responsibilities you feel $xxx salary is appropriate. I would also search salary ranges in Glassdoor or LinkedIn, as back up for that type of role to give you negotiating power!

15. Julie ESeptember 23,2021 at 9:05PM UTC

    I agree with others, ask about the discrepancy. This would leave a bad taste in my mouth and if I didn't need the job, I'd probably turn it down and keep looking. It's not good sign when they're shady right off the bat.

16. Joanna PoeSeptember 23,2021 at 9:07PM UTC

    In your shoes, I'd point-blank ask them why they cannot approach the salary range I was initially provided. If it was a mistake and they own up to it, that's good information to have about transparency/personal responsibility within the company. If they are cagey about it, that's at least a yellow flag, and I'd push for additional perks or benefits to make up for the shortfall or walk away if it's not enough to justify leaving my current position.

17. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 9:16PM UTC

    Unfortunate they have the upper hand and have decided, probably based on the volume of candidates, that they don't need to go to the top end of the range.

    If you're open to work at the lower end of the range and accept the job.

18. AnonymousSeptember 23,2021 at 11:24PM UTC

    I would speak with HR and ask them about the salary range. You don’t want to start a new job with this hanging there and end up leaving. Then you have to do the whole process over. I prefer to know what the duties of the position and the salary before interviewing. I feel that saves a lot of time on both ends.

19. Jocelyn LyonsSeptember 24,2021 at 2:45PM UTC

    I bet your offer is based on your previous salary, especially if they know that it is a significant increase. I am not sure whether this ethical or legal practice where you are, but I have seen this firsthand. I am in MA.

20. Kristen HSeptember 24,2021 at 8:02PM UTC

    Thank you everyone for your feedback! I went back to HR and asked for clarification as to why the offer was lower that the range I was given during the interview process. Apparently the range was “60s to high 80s/90s.” It was during a phone call so I guess there was a bad connection and I only heard the high end of the range ?‍♀️ but since I heard two numbers I thought I had heard correctly.

    It was a mistake on my end, but very glad I clarified because as I mentioned, it was really putting a bad taste in my mouth.

    I had been laid off from the organization when my position was eliminated and there were some issues in my last role, but I do think this other department is a great opportunity. I appreciate everyone’s insight! Now at least I know where I can end up in the role after a few years!