How much do you make as compared to others who do your same job? Should you try to negotiate for higher salary? Is there a pay gap between you and your peers? What is the average salary for your job if you were a man? If you switched companies in the same city or moved states what would that difference in pay be?
Being curious about how much salary someone makes is ok. Salary transparency holds companies accountable to not take advantage of people. This curiosity has gone VIRAL with Salary Transparent Street and they believe it’s a great sign that they have ‘poked the bear.’🐻
Salary Transparent Street has a mission to ask 2 questions “What do you do? How much do you make?” Their goal is to “Promot[e] pay transparency across the United States.” They believe that your action of sharing can “help everyone especially women, minorities, workers with disabilities, and the LGBTQ+ community.” You’ve probably seen them on all your social medias.
Personally, I really believe in salary transparency and wish we all talked about money more frankly. I wish it was seen as a fact instead of a secret. Everyone tries to surmise income amounts, but really, in the end you don’t actually know how much your friends make or even your next-door coworkers. True capitalistic freedom is not attainable if we don’t share options on how to save beyond don’t buy a coffee. We must approach this like the popular Kelly Blue Book/Carvana/Walmart price match/sneaking Amazon on your phone in the store. Having a database where you can price match jobs and salaries makes sense and we shouldn’t feel guilty for wondering. Salary Transparent Street is working towards such a database and has collected over 4,000 salaries to compare at this point. I know I added mine.
On their website (words hyperlinked) just scroll to ‘Share My Salary’ and you can do so anonymously and they don’t sell your info.
If I could change one thing to the interviews it would be to have more working class people. I feel that the interviews are currently focused on those with salaries instead of hourlies. I am just as curious and see benefit to knowing what someone makes who works at one bar/restaurant to another. I want to know what a female gets paid as compared to a male in the “blue collared” lines of work. I want companies to have to stand behind their employees’ pay like they do their products.
If you want to see what people actually make at their jobs follow Salary Transparent Street on Youtube here.
I would love to have a database because as a teacher I worked in one district was paid 35k a year for a while plus we had a pay freeze. Eventually, I switched districts to about 10 minutes away and in the same city and was paid 50k a year. Same job, same hours, but what a life change. Of course about only half of the salary is taken home in the end, but learning we have options without tediously looking at the generalized charts located on each district’s page could help schools compete more for us.
Of course they have Tik Tok too haha
Also, I am in no way affiliated with them and they haven’t even reached out to me. I just believe in the work they do and thought you might be interested too. Honestly, I’m addicted to scrolling through their stuff and by writing this article I can call all that time on there ‘work.’ haha