There are few things that made me instantly want to quit a corporate job more than finding out someone was doing the same job I was, but making much more money. I still remember the first time it happened. We were at a happy hour and I stayed with the late group. Advice to the young ones reading this: nothing good happens in the happy hours after the specials end. Go home. Safely. I digress.
As one does at the late night happy hour, we started to gossip - about office politics, hiring, and pay. Everyone there had the same job title, but varying levels of experience. In this group, I was the most experienced. For many of these people, it was their first job out of college. I, on the other hand, had two marketing roles worth of experience before that - at least 5 years of experience.
While others skated the line of saying what they actually made, one of the guys at the table bluntly said, “I’m making $75k and really, they should be paying me more.” I watched the energy around that table - especially with the women - change. Especially me. I was making $10,000 less than this Ivy League new grad to do the exact same job.
People Quit When There’s No Pay Equity
Over the next few weeks, I confirmed with each of them. We were all pissed to know he was making more money than us. Then, something happened. I didn’t realize the trend at the time, but every single one of those people found new jobs, myself included.
This isn’t uncommon. According to a 2023 PayScale survey, around 35% of employees reported quitting their jobs because they discovered they were being paid less than their peers. Other studies and reports also highlight that pay equity is often one of the top reasons for job dissatisfaction, which can lead to employee turnover.
Then, we’re reminded on all of the different Equal Pay Days just how little most people are paid compared to white male colleagues. Latina women get .57 cents for every dollar. Black women get .67 cents for every dollar. That makes me want to barf and it’s just scraping the surface of the disparities when it comes to pay.
Pay Your Best Talent, Not Your Best Negotiators
We know pay transparency laws are actively trying to address this issue with even more beginning in January of 2025. You can see what’s happening everywhere and in your state in this interactive map. However, slapping a range on a job isn’t going to address that whole “we paid two people completely different rates.” It’s a range. You can pay whatever end of the range you want, right?
If you want to pay your best negotiators instead of your best talent? This is a great way to keep doing that. Or you could create a framework that makes pay a calculation instead of a guess - and it starts when you write the job posting.
You have to be clear about the baseline requirements and what the top of the pay range can do that the bottom might struggle with. No, this doesn’t turn into the preferred requirements section. Here’s why.
Starting Simple With Pay Equity: Talk To The Hiring Manager
It can start pretty simple. Ask your hiring manager, “what has someone at the top of the pay range done or know how to do that someone at the bottom of the range does not know how to do?” For example, if they’ve led a team before? They are at the higher end of the pay range versus someone with no management experience. They’ve had this exact job at a competitor? You guessed it. Top of the pay range.
If there’s something that will get them more money, say that in the job post. Something like, “if you have XYZ experience, you qualify for a higher salary. Please discuss with your recruiter.” I’ve seen it done with location variations, skills, and education.
The bottom line: explain the range for real pay equity - and stick by that explanation! Spell it out. Start conversations about pay early in the recruiting process. That means in the phone screen and each interview, be really clear about the experiences they have had so you can compensate them accordingly and stop paying the Ivy League frat boys more just because they asked.
