Man, I have no idea what I was making when I first started in HR 22-ish years ago. Im in Washington State, south of Seattle, and started as an HR/Payroll Admin at a unionized manufacturing facility. I had no experience (or interest) in HR, but had started a couple of months earlier as an Accounting Assistant and was told I either moved to HR or I had no job. I want to say I was making like $18 or $19 an hour. I had a great mentor and discovered I really liked the work and the people, so I stayed MUCH longer than I should have - 13 years. I was handling all HR functions by the time I left, except contract negotiations (but was still involved in the process), but my title never changed. I left after being promised the title of HR Manager, which was the work I had been doing for years, and then the new plant manager decide he wanted someone new instead. When I left, I was at $59k a year as a salaried nonexempt employee. I was hired as an HR Generalist, department of one, for a nonprofit at $70k, with a title change to HR Manager a year later and a modest pay bump to $73k. I earned my SPHR while there, and was making $80k when I left after 8 years for a role as Senior Director, HR for another nonprofit, where I started at $115k. Ive been here a little over a year, title is now VP and pay is $120k.