Job interviewer lies that his current salary is $15K more than it is, gets the job, and earns $20K more than he made at his old job: 'They will lie to you to pay you less whenever possible.'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Writer and Editor
Nov 25, 2025 8:00 PM EST

He's gaming the system, and he'll be better off for it.

How many of you were told that if you worked hard and were loyal to a company for many years, you would reap significant financial benefits? If your parents or grandparents worked for a company that gave out large pensions upon retirement or had great union benefits, they probably strongly believed that loyalty and hard work are king. But if you are an office worker in today's world, you know that you're probably going to get more money if you jump around than if you stay working at the same cheap company for 45 years. There are some companies where the work environment and benefits are worth not getting as much money as you'd like, but most people aren't working solely for office culture; they're working for a living. And job hopping is one of the only surefire ways to increase your salary by $10K+ without years and years of loyalty. That is, if you job hop strategically. There's a way to get a way bigger pay bump than you'd get if you were staying at your old company, but you might need to stretch the truth to achieve it.

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  • Young handsome businessman in light modern office job interview with directors
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • The employee in this story knew he was not making enough money, so he made the bold decision to lie in his job interview about how much he was currently making to secure a much higher salary. His plan worked, and now he's making $20K more than what he made before. 

  • I lied about my current salary in an interview

    So I've been job hunting and had an interview last week. They asked what I'm making now and I bumped it up by 15k. Not crazy but enough to push their offer higher.
    via u/Fremore
  • Young handsome businessman in light modern office job interview
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • Got the job. New salary is 20k more than what I actually make (not the inflated number).
    via u/Fremore
  • Feeling zero guilt about it. These companies have entire departments dedicated to paying us as little as possible. They lie to us constantly about "budget constraints" while execs get bonuses.
    via u/Fremore
  • Two women sitting on leather chairs in front of table
    via Amy Hirschi

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • If they wanted honesty they shouldn't have made the job market a game where we're expected to negotiate against ourselves.
    via u/Fremore
  • lvpoker420 They will lie to you to pay you less whenever possible.
    via u/lvpoker420
  • Fremore OP Exactly. And they've got HR teams running the numbers on how little they can get away with offering. We're just leveling the playing field.
    via u/Fremore
  • KetoLurkerHereAgain I still remember finding a spreadsheet with salaries on it and seeing that my position was actually budgeted for $15K more than what they were paying me. And that was just salary - not total comp or anything. I was so pissed but couldn't say anything since, well, I'd been snooping and shouldn't have seen the spreadsheet.
    via u/KetoLurkerHereAgain
  • RobTaunomy Hey, same thing happened to me! Also just over a decade ago. HR sent out a spreadsheet showing what everyone made. Made sense why I survived all the layoffs. I literally was the lowest paid person in the department. And I trained half the people in there. On a plus note, was a big motivator in me applying to other jobs and finding somewhere that really has and continues to respect and value me. So, demoralizing I guess but a solid lesson about knowing your self worth.
    via u/RobTaunomy
  • Current-Quantity-785 they will do background checking. it may back fire on you.
    via u/Current-Quantity-785
  • Rollerbladersdoexist LOL they don't check for salary information.
    via u/Rollerbladersdoexist
  • loadnurmom Depends on the company. I absolutely have had this backfire on me. I have had background checks reveal I lied about my salary. I have had companies that required proof 9f previous salary. That being said, not every company is that rectal, and the ones that are, have been toxic shit holes
    via u/loadnurmom
  • AccomplishdAccomplce I don't think they can, legally
    via u/AccomplishdAccomplce
  • hawkman1000 This is probably the only raise you'll get. After a few years of 1% raises, you'll have to quit and lie to someone else for your next big bump.
    via u/hawkman1000
  • Fremore OP already expecting that. at least I'm starting from a better baseline this time
    via u/Fremore
  • Gremlin555 Keep your options open. Never stop looking for better opportunities.
    via u/Gremlin555
  • stupidugly1889 This is SOP
    via u/stupidugly1889
  • Rustyshacklefordman1 Standard operating procedure
    via u/Rustyshacklefordman1
  • Fremore OP Yep. Learned it from watching them operate for years.
    via u/Fremore
  • Xtra-Chromo-Zone For me, this goes under negotiation. If I'm looking for a job, I'll always ask for more money than I expect to get paid.
    via u/Xtra-Chromo-Zone
  • Fremore OP That's all this was, standard negotiation. They asked what I make, I gave them a number that works for me. Nobody got hurt and I got fair value for what I bring.
    via u/Fremore
  • ShinigamiLuvApples It's the best way to do it. The job I recently got I asked for 80k. They came back with 75k, which is 20k more than I was making before so it was a no brainer to take it. But had I not done that, they'd likely have tried to offer 60k. The worst they can say is no, but you'll never have the chance to make more out of the gates if you don't try. Unless the wage they offer is fixed without wiggle room, some jobs do that.
    via u/ShinigamiLuvApples
  • FakeDoctorMeatCoat Remove your address from your resume. There was a linked in post by an HR rep stating - proudly - that she googles candidates' addresses to base the offers on their rent and local expenses, which is really irrelevant. Truly a trash human.
    via u/FakeDoctorMeatCoat

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salary job interviews antiwork jobs employee job lies work new job working interviews reddit story employees job interview interview money interviewer
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