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What amazes me the most is how the people who get taken advantage of the most are always quick to defend the rules they follow that actually work to keep in a position of disadvantage.
I find this very true. I know a girl that gets abused by her boyfriend but always defends him. I also used to have a co-worker that was severely underpaid but always defended his boss (he knew he was underpaid because he told me and another co-worker his salary-ha!) Then one day I convinced him to either ask for a huge raise or look elsewhere and he got hired by another company that pays him 50% more.
I don't fail to understand anything. I reject your premise that knowing the salary of another empowers those who know it unless you are in the same field/doing the same job.
You rejected the premise and then conditioned the rejection to the very example where it would be relevant. That means you agree with me. No statements are absolute, obviously there are situation where the knowledge would be power.
I even said in the post the only winners are employers, so clearly I was saying it in regards to salary. The only way the salary could be helpful is if it were from someone in a similar position/industry.
What was the point of questioning the statement, if you not only understood it but agreed with it?
I tell who I tell. Honestly, it just depends on who it is and if I really care if they know or not. I think the more I make though, I tend not to tell as openly. I wouldn't tell anyone at my work, unless they are old and good friends.
[quote=KosmoKramer;33398627]Lately, I've had friends and family members prod me over my salary. The more I try to sidestep the question, the more I get interrogated.
I like to keep my salary private simply because there is no right answer to "How much do you make?". If your salary is too low, people will pity you and look down on you and your profession. If you salary is too high, people tend to get jealous and expect more from you (e.g, Bob makes over 6-figures a year, but he can't pick up the dinner tab?)
What do you do when your friends/relatives ask you about your salary?[/quote]
I answer with a "none of your damn business." I can't stand people asking how much I make. That's a private matter.
On rare occasion, I've told people who are entry/junior level what I've made at my peak just to give them an idea of what they can expect to make if they are lucky. But I don't make that anymore. It wasn't a lot anyway, but it was a lot for that position and years of experience.
It seems to me that on CD forum, most of the people who are proud to reveal their salaries do so usually when they are making more than another person at a similar person might expect ... like I just said about myself and my peak salary.
You never have a pharmacist coming on here and saying, "I make 100K a year." Everyone would be like ... OK, cool. That's what pharmacists make.
You have people coming on here saying they make like $150K working 35 hours a week as a software guy, while some other software guy reading is making $50K working a similar position. Fuels jealousy.
Lately, I've had friends and family members prod me over my salary. The more I try to sidestep the question, the more I get interrogated.
What do you do when your friends/relatives ask you about your salary?
This used to happen to my dad all the time at family reunions. He liked to give everyone a different answer - with a spread of about $150,000. He used to laugh knowing how nosy relatives would be eager to share the gossip and wind up in a state of confusion.
The only people who know my salary (outside of my manager/HR/the IRS) would be the people who have a legit need to know -- my mortgage broker, my accountant, etc.
Where I work the payscale is known and everyone maxes out. So I work with a guy who has been there for 41 years, a women who has been there for almost 20 years and another woman who has been there for almost 9 years and guess what they all make the same amount. Pretty f-ed up if you ask me.
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It wasn't a lot anyway, but it was a lot for that position and years of experience.
