Your current salary need not set the price of your next job

A job interviewer in the UK can ask what you earn. You do not have to answer. That distinction puts applicants in a position to steer a potentially uncomfortable conversation away from their current pay and towards the value of the job they want. According to BBC Business (direct), employers remain free to ask about salary history, even as recruiters face calls to abandon the practice and the EU moves to prohibit it.

For candidates, the challenge is how to respond without letting an old salary become the yardstick for a new offer. Louise Rudd, a senior adviser at Acas, the workplace advice and conciliation service, says UK regulations do not prevent employers from asking about either current earnings or salary expectations. If employers choose to ask, she says, they should put the same questions to every applicant so candidates are treated fairly.

Why past pay is under scrutiny

The concern goes beyond an awkward interview moment. The Fawcett Society, which campaigns for women and gender equality, has argued that salary-history questions risk carrying existing pay inequalities into the next job. Its campaign to end the practice highlighted differences linked to gender, race and disability. In the society’s view, an offer shaped by previous earnings can reward perceived worth and negotiating ability rather than skills, experience and performance.

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation backed that campaign and urged recruiters to stop asking. Employers also have wider obligations when selecting staff: they must not discriminate on protected grounds. Those include age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. Asking everyone the same pay question sits within that broader expectation of fair treatment.

The policy response differs between the UK and the EU. New rules being rolled out across the European bloc will ban employers from asking candidates about salary history. The UK Cabinet Office plans described by BBC Business do not include that restriction. Instead, they focus on telling employers to publish salary information in job advertisements, giving applicants information about pay before an interview.

Turning the conversation towards the role

Applicants who are comfortable sharing their current salary can do so. Those who would rather keep it private can discuss their expectations or explain their understanding of the role’s salary range, Rudd says. Recruitment firms also suggest focusing on skills and experience. Some people interviewed by BBC News in London said they might inflate their earnings to seek a better offer, but the report cautioned that the risks of lying could outweigh any gain.

Shazia Ejaz, director of campaigns at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, says preparation should combine confidence with a realistic view of pay. Candidates can research the market rate—the typical pay for a role—and identify both their contribution and the benefits they value.

Ejaz’s message: candidates who understand pay levels and can explain their contribution are best placed to secure a suitable package.

The next development to watch is the rollout of the EU restrictions alongside the UK’s different emphasis on salary information in adverts. For now, UK candidates retain a choice: disclose their earnings, or move the discussion towards what the next job should pay.