I’ve always thought it was taboo/impolite to
a) Tell people how much I make or
b) Ask them how much they make
I can see only negatives:
- You share your salary with a co-worker who makes less. Now he or she feels slighted, or jealous, or thinks of you as a jerk (especially if they think that you know how much they make).
- You share your salary with a co-worker who makes more. Now he or she looks down on you, feels sorry for you (a problem if you have pride), or thinks you’re a whiner (because he may think you know what he makes and are telling him your salary as a means of making him feel badly for making more – very douchey).
- Asking someone for their salary info is considered rude by some people and should not be done unless you are certain that it is OK with the person whom you wish to ask.
If a firm wants to introduce transparency, that’s another thing – they can post salary ranges on the company’s intranet site. Then you just need to know a person’s job title to ascertain their salary range, and personal ethics/comfort be damned.