Young Professionals More Willing to Discuss Salaries

The New York Times refers to frank discussions of salaries on websites like greedyassociates.com as evidence that younger professionals are more willing to discuss pay than their parents.

“For people old enough to remember phone booths, a blunt reference to salary in a social setting still represents the height of bad manners,” the story says. “But for many young professionals, the don’t-ask-don’t-tell etiquette of previous generations seems like a relic.”

Robert Frank, an economics professor at Cornell, told the Times that salary information helps young people who see themselves as free agents move on to another job if they learn they are underpaid in their industry.

Financial columnist Suze Orman says such candor can help professionals fight income disparities. Her call for her hosts on an appearance on The View to disclose their salaries went unheeded, however.