To get the best out of people, they need to feel they are being paid fairly – otherwise, they’ll be distracted and disengaged. In many parts of the world there’s legislation about Equal Pay which requires employers to pair fairly – particularly to ensure that there is no bias leading to unfair pay for minorities – especially women.
Put simply, equal pay for work of equal value means that pay should be in direct proportion to the size of the job (as measured by job evaluation) in any given organization. Fair pay means paying for the work that you need done. The more complex the work and / or the more value it creates for the organization, then the more it should be paid.
Korn Ferry research shows that while men, on average, earn around 20% more than women, when we did deeper and look at men and women, working for the same employer, doing work of equal value, then the pay gap is significantly reduced – but it doesn’t disappear. The challenge is to balance the principle of providing the same pay for people doing work of equal value with the vagaries of the “market” which might provide premiums for certain kinds of work – particularly if those premiums exist in areas of the market that are typically occupied more by men than women, such as the STEM professions.
WHY KORN FERRY?
- We understand the issues. We know that organizations must succeed in the war for talent and comply with regulations – it’s about balancing your obligations. We also know that bias is most likely unintentional, and organizations need help to understand the implications of their practices.
- Our methodology is the gold standard. Our best-in-class methodology allows us to accurately categorize jobs using proven, bias-free criteria. Indeed, regulators around the world use our methodology to ensure equal pay for work of equal value. Our methodology is relied on by more organizations in more countries than any other.
- Beyond compliance. Satisfying the regulator is only the start. Successful employers leverage their fair pay practices to build engagement and to ensure that they optimize organizational effectiveness by utilizing diversity and inclusion as a competitive advantage. Korn Ferry is a global leader in implementing diversity and inclusion strategies, so we go beyond compliance and impact performance.
- It’s personal to us. We believe that equal pay for work of equal value is a right for all employees. Nobody should be disadvantaged in terms of pay because of their gender, colour, race or religion – what matters is the work, the person’s ability to do the work and the supply/demand of talent capable of doing the work.
