Are you transparent about salaries on your job ads? What about your apprenticeship outreach? Perhaps, like many employers, you opt to put "competitive salary" instead. Here's why that might be damaging for diversity, your pipeline and, ultimately, your employer brand.
1. It compounds disadvantage
According to the Social Mobility Commission, employees from poorer backgrounds are paid on average 17% less than colleagues from more privileged families. Even when they have exactly the same role, education and experience, this figure still sits at 7%. And for young people in their first job after full-time education, this gap is even greater. Research shows those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds earn less than half than their more privileged counterparts on entering the workforce.
Experts suggest this salary discrepancy – even between employees with the exact same role, education and experience – could be because people from poorer backgrounds are less likely to have professional networks to advise them on salary expectations and successful negotiation. There's also the confidence factor: disruption and instability in your background or family set-up can lead to a lack of self-belief, which is crucial during conversations about pay.
Of course, it's also about who you know – with fewer networking opportunities, disadvantaged school-leavers have limited people in their corner to positively influence their earning potential. Pay inequality could also be a result of conscious or unconscious class discrimination from employers – such as "cultural matching", where decision-makers promote people they personally identify with.
Stating a salary helps you avoid these sorts of inherent biases in your recruitment process, creating a more level playing field for everyone.
2. It makes roles less appealing
Surveys show job adverts without salaries listed get 25-35% fewer applicants. That's no surprise when 82% of people view salary as the most important factor when looking for a new role. If you want to grow a pipeline packed with untapped talent that gives you plenty of promising options when it comes to assessment, start by being transparent (and fair) with the salary you offer.
For apprenticeships, advertising a "competitive salary" is not only offputting, it's confusing. School-leavers with little to no work experience have no frame of reference when it comes to salaries, so "competitive" means little to them. For those from disadvantaged backgrounds, who might not have professional parents or other adult influences to offer advice and guidance on things like salary, the confusion is even greater. This could lead to you losing out to a competitor who actually pays less, but is transparent about salary. If you're confident about your offering, why not shout about it?
3. It reflects poorly on your employer brand
Eighty-six per cent of people say they wouldn't apply to or continue to work for a company with a bad reputation, yet failing to disclose salaries can massively damage trust among potential employees and the wider workforce. Secretiveness suggests you might have something to hide, or could be prone to taking advantage – neither of which are promising signs of an employer that respects people's time, experience, or skills.
Plus, people talk. When targeting school-leavers for your apprentice programme, remember they'll likely have inside intel from older cohorts. So, whether or not it comes from you, they'll probably have an idea of the sort of salary they can expect from your company. If you want to be seen as an employer of choice, it's best to be open and honest from the off.
Not sure what salary to offer for your apprentice roles? We can help. At Visionpath, we can work with you at any stage of the hiring cycle – from outline roles and salaries, to building your pipeline, to hiring and onboarding.
Want to find out more? Check out how we work with employers or get in touch.
