Nosey job agency or normal?

moneyuser

I'm looking to change jobs and whenever an agency rings up one of the first questions they normally ask is "How much are you earning?" I haven't looked for a job for a long time so I'm wondering is it normal to disclose salary to them? What use is it to them to know this? I can tell them what sort of salary range I'm looking for so don't see why they need to know this.

Lollypop75

I think it's pretty common to be asked your current/most recent salary when applying for jobs, and it makes sense that an agency would ask for the similar information. They sometimes use this when deciding how much money to offer you (once successful).

So long as you're not applying for positions that pay double what you're currently on, or similar, you should be able to use your current salary to negotiate more money from a prospective employer.