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If you’ve ever been asked that on the streets of Washington DC, or any other surrounding city, odds are you encountered Hannah Williams.
The 25-year-old data analyst is changing the business game by opening up the dialogue about wage transparency in the job market – and she’s doing it one TikTok at a time.
“I think that people just weren't having these conversations before because of the taboo around it,” she said. “I think that what we're doing is very ballsy and it's something that people have never seen.”
While documenting her own job-hunting experiences, Williams found that most people would not, or could not, talk about how much they make. So, she decided to use her platform to inspire others to find their worth – literally!
“I think that that just never existed before,” Williams said. “We're finally opening up that dialogue with these videos and educating people on the legality of talking about pay and your rights as an employee and how you can advocate for yourself.”
Williams has talked to everyone from a lifeguard making $15 an hour to a lawyer who racked in two million in one year. Some are very willing to disclose their salaries on camera and some not so much.
One woman even felt it was culturally inappropriate for her to discuss her salary but after meeting Williams in person, she wanted to change that.
“She actually messaged us on Instagram…and told us, ‘Hey, I was that girl you talked to who's going to go to therapy,’ Williams explained. “She's like, ‘I just want to let you know I actually did talk about this in therapy, and I'm working on combating this and thank you for making me aware of it.’”
Besides this individualistic impact, Williams ultimately hopes the videos will push companies to implement pay transparency into job postings and in the workplace. To do this, Williams wants to create enough buzz so companies feel the pressure to impose this change.
“We want to hit every single state in the country,” she said. “This summer we're going to go on a nationwide tour and hit like all the capital cities and then any other cities that we think would be a good show of the discrepancy.”
So be on the lookout because Salary Transparency Street could be coming to your city. You can check out Williams’ videos by following either of her TikTok accounts @salarytransparentstreet or @stocksandsquats or going online.
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