Salary Transparency: A Recurring Demand from Job Seekers
Salary transparency has been a consistent priority for job seekers, especially in the IT industry—and it’s easy to see why. Candidates want clarity, fairness, and respect when it comes to compensation, yet many companies still keep salaries under wraps.
What is Pay Transparency?
Stripping away the buzzwords, pay transparency simply means ending the secrecy around salaries. Here’s what that actually looks like:
Pay ranges, not single numbers: Instead of waiting until the final offer to find out if a job pays fairly, candidates get a realistic salary range upfront.
Open conversations: Companies clarify how pay is determined (factors like experience, location, and role expectations), helping candidates assess fairness.
Different levels of transparency: It’s not all or nothing. Some companies list salary bands in job ads, while others make compensation structures internally accessible.
?? Mythbuster Alert: Pay transparency doesn’t mean making everyone’s salary public—it’s about giving candidates the information they need to make informed career decisions.
The Push for Salary Transparency
Job seekers are over it: No one wants to waste time on interviews only to receive a lowball offer. Transparency eliminates this frustration by setting clear expectations from the start.
Fairness & closing pay gaps – Salary secrecy often hides inequalities based on gender, ethnicity, and other factors. Transparency pushes companies to address these gaps and ensure equitable pay structures.
Winning the war for talent – Today’s candidates, especially younger professionals, expect transparency and value-driven workplaces. Companies that embrace open pay practices build trust, stronger employer branding, and attract top talent.
Some organizations are already leading the way by openly sharing how salaries are determined. The result? More trust, stronger employer reputation, and a steady flow of applicants.
The Bottom Line: Companies Still Have Work to Do
Despite growing demand for salary transparency, many companies remain hesitant. Our 2024 study found that:
?? 60% of developers prioritize pay transparency.
?? Yet, only 40% of recruiters disclose salary ranges in job postings.
?? And in practice, market-wide transparency rates are even lower.
There’s still a major gap to close, but the shift is happening. Companies that adapt now will be ahead of the curve—those that resist risk losing talent to more transparent employers.
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Fractional/Interim Talent Attraction Leader | Data-Driven-Recruiting | Speaker
1 周Being transparent regarding your salaries externally is just the tip of the iceberg for a lot of companies. Even the they would like to communicate compensation, for instance on job ads, there's some kind of internal legacy the needs to be overcome firstly. Without going into detail, that's what the EU Pay Transparency Act tackles. This will not only affect compensation, but also levelling, performance management and other related areas. I'm very much in favour of creating that kind of transparency as it will contribute massively to pay equality, and equity in general.