Are You Hiring the Best People — or Just the Best Negotiators? Your Pay Practices May Be Biased

I remember receiving one of my very first job offers in corporate America. I signed that offer letter immediately. My parents had raised me to trust the system; I believed that a company would, of course, pay me fairly for my skills and expertise. I thought it would be rude or disrespectful to ask for more money. I trusted the recruiter and hiring manager to give me a fair package.

Three months into that new role, I remember discovering that one of my peers made $16,000 more than me. We had the same degrees and very similar work experiences. In fact, I had two years more additional global experience than he, which was something this role required. I was in disbelief. How could this have happened? How was I getting paid so much less?

Every year, Equal Pay Day symbolizes “how far into the year women must work to earn what men earn in the previous year.” And now, the gender pay gap has widened for two years in a row. This is the first time this has happened since the data has been tracked from the 1960s. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2024, the average woman who worked full-time was paid $0.81 for every $1 a man earned. In 2023, the average woman who worked full-time was paid $0.84 for every $1 a man earned.

This is an “average” and does not reflect the many different ways women identify and how their multiple identities can impact their earning potential during the course of their careers. This statistic also doesn’t fully reflect the continued layoffs in the market, and the number of women who have been forced to exit the workforce and are still looking for full-time employment.

As leaders, this gender pay gap can seem daunting and overwhelming. As individuals, it can feel like we don’t have enough power to close that gap. But imagine if each of us took responsibility for ensuring the women who worked on our teams were paid fairly and equitably. This can start the very first moment you hire someone to join your team.

So this Equal Pay Day, let’s stop rewarding strong negotiators and start rewarding expertise instead:

1. Let candidates know you don’t negotiate from the start

As I share in my book Reimagine Inclusion, at the start of the recruiting process, let candidates know you don’t negotiate. Candidates can then opt out of the process. This will prevent any surprises at the end of the process when they realize they can’t just ask for more money. Carta, for example, is a fintech company that has a “first and best offer” framework and shares this openly on their careers site.

Remember, if a candidate is uncomfortable negotiating, as I have been in the past, they might not ask for more money and accept the offer. This puts them at a disadvantage versus other candidates who negotiate and are successful in getting more money. If the recruiting or hiring manager is uncomfortable with the fact that a particular candidate is asking for more, they may shut down the negotiations even if there may be room in the budget to pay the candidate more.

Setting a culture of “no negotiations allowed” can ensure that you pay consistent and fair salaries. To structure your policy for success, determine first what a fair and equitable compensation target means for the roles and levels for which you are recruiting. Ensure you are competitive within the industry and the geography, utilizing third-party consultants and data to validate.

Finally, there can be no exception to your policy. Candidates might not believe the policy, and still try to negotiate. Recruiters and leaders have to adhere to the policy to ensure individuals are paid on expertise and not on their ability or inability to negotiate.

2. Make pay ranges transparent both internally and externally

Many companies now share the salary bands transparently on job descriptions. As Rippling, a company offering comprehensive solutions for HR, Payroll, IT and Spend, shares, pay transparency laws continue to change. And they differ state by state. Rippling shares a comprehensive guide on what those changing laws look like. Some states require companies to include a range in the job listing; others don’t require you to disclose a range until after the first interview. Some require more than just the pay range, including benefits, bonus, commission and more. And some states require transparency for remote jobs, too.

As a leader, regardless of the state you are operating in, advocate for including salary bands in the job description. It can build trust from the start of the process. Remember that the band you share shouldn’t be the widest range possible, like $150,000 to $600,000. Be thoughtful about what the role entails, what expertise you are looking for and what you would realistically compensate for.

When you share this externally, remember it will be available on places like LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor and even your own career site. Make sure that leaders have these bands available so that they can be equipped to handle questions internally. For example, if you are hiring for engineers, the engineers already in your organization may start asking questions about the salary range posted and about their own pay. Leaders need to be equipped to address those questions with the support of HR and Legal.

3. Fix gaps proactively before your employees come to you

Don’t be the leader who decides to finally adjust someone’s salary when they come to complain about how they are making less than a peer. Be the leader who is proactively checking if their team is being paid fairly and equitably. It’s not only HR and legal’s job to do this; it should be a partnership, and if you see pay discrepancies on your team, proactively fix it. This approach builds trust in your teams. You don’t want employees who are good negotiators, constantly coming to you to try to get a salary increase, a spot bonus, more stock grants or other forms of compensation.

During performance reviews, when you share your feedback and share compensation changes, be sure to also address pay philosophy. You can ask for support from your HR and legal team on language. You want to let your employees know that, as a company, you continue to ensure employees are being paid fairly and equitably when it comes to their talent, expertise and track record of success. Their pay should be tied to their performance goals as well.

Remember, when two candidates are equally qualified, they should not be paid differently because one pushed harder and asked for more money. Let’s stop rewarding negotiating and start rewarding expertise. As leaders, we can play our part in helping to close the gender pay gap and start to level the playing field.