Compensation History
Compensation history, also referred to as salary history, is the private information that some organizations may choose to ask candidates during the interview process.
Updated: November 22, 2023
Compensation history, also referred to as salary history, is the private information that some organizations may choose to ask candidates during the interview process. The applicant is sometimes asked to voluntarily share how much they have earned in previous roles they have held. This is a way to determine their eligibility for the role they are interviewing for.
Typically, this information is shared in a document that details all of the past earnings of an employee. The document contain information regarding the name of applicant, the name of each company the applicant worked at, the job title at each company and the salary as well as the benefits packages the candidate has received in their past roles. It is common to keep the data organized within compensation management software once this information is received from a candidate by an organization. This can help HR professionals access employee compensation history and talent records to easily make compensation adjustments when making salary decisions.
Determining the market value of a candidate or gauging the level of experience a candidate may have, ensuring the expectations of a candidate are aligned with the budget of the open role, checking that the company is offering a fair amount for the open role and using the information as part of developing a compensation and benefits plan are benefits to asking for compensation history.
Benefits to asking for compensation history
- Cost Transparency
- Negotiation Leverage
- Market Competitiveness
- Internal Equity
- Efficient Resource Allocation
- Performance Evaluation
- Retention Strategy
- Legal Compliance
- Customized Offers
- Data-Driven Decision-Making
