Discussing your salary with coworkers has often been considered taboo in office culture, but new survey data suggests younger generations have different views on pay transparency.

A recent survey by human resources firm Robert Half found that 86 per cent of Gen Zers and 59 per cent of millennials reported discussing salaries with their work colleagues, while just 40 per cent of Gen Xers and 41 per cent of baby boomers said they do the same.

Overall, the survey of Canadian workers found that 52 per cent of respondents said they have discussed salaries with colleagues before.

Thirty-five per cent of respondents said they are swapping salary information with colleagues equally, while 17 per cent said they aren’t sharing their own salary information even if they know what their colleagues make.

When it comes to salary negotiation, the survey found that 37 per cent of respondents said they would trust their coworkers for advice, however 44 per cent said advice from a “credible industry source” was the most trustworthy.

Meanwhile, 40 per cent of respondents said they would trust someone in a professional network outside of their own company, while 27 per cent and 26 per cent said they would trust friends or family members, respectively.

SALARY TRANSPARENCY

This latest research underscores a growing demand for pay transparency across all industries in Canada.

British Columbia recently joined Prince Edward Island as the second province to mandate that all public job postings must include wage information or a set salary range, with the government of Ontario looking to follow suit. 

Separate survey data collected by Robert Half found that the disclosure of salary ranges in job postings is now an expectation for half of all Canadian professionals when they are job-seeking.

An additional 63 per cent of respondents in the same survey said they would take themselves out of consideration for a role if an employer declines to provide salary information upon request.

METHODOLOGY

The data referenced was collected from an online survey of 596 professionals 18 years or older across Canada between Aug. 5-15, 2023. The survey was developed by Robert Half and conducted by an external survey partner.