Embarrassing question, but I have to ask it.

[Pool Hall Ace]

A little background: Six years ago, I got married and relocated. My husband told me I never had to work again, as he was getting ready to retire. He was flush with cash at the time, and I believed him.

I found out that his entire story is a lie, and that he has pissed away any money he has ever had. I cashed out the equity in my life insurance policy and opened my own bank account. I need to go back to work -- in fact, I want very much to go back to work. I already have a part-time job, and my goal is to be so busy working that I don't have to spend any time with my husband.

So here is my question: many job applications ask for starting and ending salaries. While I could give a ballpark figure, I don't remember exactly what I made at my last job. How accurate do these figures have to be?

Yes, I realize I have been stupid, so please, no lectures. :/

Thanks! :hi:

[DaveJ]

1. Can't you call and ask your previous employer?

I presume that's what employers do, call and ask...

Anyway, this is not to lecture, but don't worry about being stupid. I've been through catastrophic life events too, that were a result of trusting people. I've found it necessary to maintain a cautious distrust toward everyone. But I think that distrust is a natural state of mind most people have. Like me, you were probably raised in a good family and therefore assumed everyone else was good. Only to find out that people come from a variety of messed up backgrounds. I was married to my previous wife 6 years before I got out, and then made sure the next girl I met came from a good stable family, and sure enough she's amazing and there is nothing to worry about now.

[Pool Hall Ace]

2. I found out there is a website called The Work Number.

It's impossible to e-mail the HR department at my former employer, so I e-mailed my former boss, who forwarded the e-mail to HR. It got bounced around a bit because everyone seems to be out of the office. At first, no one could find any information on me, because they were looking me up under my married name. I was asked if I was sure I was an actual employee! I was there for five years, but no one who is in HR now was there when I was (except for the VP, who had just started, and was not in on the passing around of this e-mail).

Anyway, at The Work Number, you can look up your former employer's code number, create a PIN for yourself, and retrieve salary information and employment dates. You can also give prospective employers your former employer's code number, and authorize them to retrieve information on you.

Apparently, that is one less task that the HR department does.

The mutual friend who introduced me to my husband knew about his past troubles with alcohol, but chose not to say anything because we seemed so happy together. I told him he should have spoken up when we were discussing marriage, but he thought that would be interfering. If I ever decide to marry again, I will perform some sort of a background check. It would have saved me a world of hurt.

[OrwellwasRight]

3. How about your old tax records? nt

[MidwestRick]

4. Agreed

You should be able to go to your old tax returns to find out what you made. When I recruited in the auto industry years ago, from time to time employers would ask candidates to provide proof of what you made. If you don't have those records, estimate as well as you can, in most cases, they won't ask for proof, unless you claim you were making much more than the industry standard currently.

-MR

[rug]

5. "my goal is to be so busy working that I don't have to spend any time with my husband."

:rofl:

Good luck on both counts.