A reader writes:
I know that salary negotiation is generally acceptable, expected, and wise, and I also did recruiting for about a year. But I’m looking for a job again, and I’ve never seen this question on an application before:
“To ensure fair compensation, we benchmark salaries against nonprofits of similar size and budget; because of this, we do not negotiate salary. The salary for this role is $96,650. Please confirm this is in line with your desired salary expectations.” (Dropdown: “Yes, I understand the salary for this role is $96,650.”)
Does this mean I should never pick it up?
Also, related: Assume the salary is below market rate or has a huge range, and you know they know. And you probably won’t even accept the highest number in this range, but you want to tempt them in the interview process and then try to ask for a little more than the maximum. But they ask if you agree with the limits of the app, and then do an initial check and ask again. Should you just say yes? If you say yes, does that mean you can’t negotiate later?
Yes, when they tell you clearly at the beginning that this very specific number is the salary and they don’t negotiate, and they ask you to confirm that you understand it with a very specific dropdown…that’s the salary.
The only way you can try to negotiate and still seem like you are acting in good faith is if there is actually something about your background that might qualify you for a higher salary. within the structure you understand how to use them. such as if it becomes clear that they have alternative qualifications
But otherwise, no, they’re saying they’re not going to negotiate it, and if you know from the start you won’t accept that salary, you shouldn’t have to go through their entire process, especially when they asked you to confirm that you understand they don’t negotiate for internal equity reasons, which means what they’re trying to avoid is paying people differently for the same work because one person negotiated better than someone else.
As for your second question about jobs that offer a larger or smaller range than market rate: Is this also a job with an explicit “we do not negotiate policy” that they ask you to agree to at the beginning? If so, all of the above applies. But if that’s not the case, that’s a different situation; In that situation, there is scope for trying to negotiate, even if at the beginning of the process you verbally say that you are okay with their limits. When you get the offer, you can explain that after going through the interview process and learning more about the job, you’ll be looking for a salary of $X and whether they have some scope, etc.
But if they are transparent from the beginning about what the salary is and it’s not flexible, it would be bad faith to take the slot from another candidate if you know you won’t accept that number.
