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Pay Guide

LAST UPDATE: 02.04.23

How to write a fairer, more equitable pay policy

By People Support Coop & RadHR

Home » Guides » Pay

Summary

From flat pay structures to needs based pay systems - how do we live our progressive values, meet everyone’s needs and avoid replicating the systemic inequalities of the corporate world? This guide explores the tricky topic of pay.

The many factors to address in designing a pay system for your organisation. 

Section 1:

Why do we need radical pay policies?

An overview of different approaches to pay, from flat pay structures to needs-based pay.

Section 2:

What does the law say?

The laws you need to be aware of when designing a pay system, from minimum wage and equal pay legislation, to discrimination and protected disclosures. 

Section 3:

What’s wrong with standard pay policies?

How common pay practices risk entrenching privilege and inequality.

  • Pay secrecy: Why a lack of transparency can lead to bias in pay systems.
  • Performance-related pay: Why performance-related pay often embeds inequality.

Section 4:

Collectively designing pay policies

Power, privilege and conversations about pay: We consider why talking about money triggers discomfort in people and risks centering the voices of those with the most power and privilege.

Section 5:

What to include in a pay policy

We conclude with a series of prompt questions to help you design a pay system that takes account of:

  • Fairness: From legally-fair to equitable systems that meet needs.
  • Transparency: Ensuring everyone understands the pay system
  • Objective criteria: Why differential pay systems need to be based on objective criteria.
  • Affordability: Designing within your organisation’s financial limits.
  • Benefits: Why cash is not the only way to offer valuable support. 
  • Pay reviews: Why regular reviews are needed.

Downloads

Open the guide or resource:

Pay Policy Guide

Authors

People Support Coop Logo RadHR Logo

Licence

This guide is shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International licence (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).

This means you are free to use it to create and develop your own policies and processes.

For more detail, see the end of the guide.

Discussion

To comment or ask a question, visit our community discussion page...

Comment on our forum: community.radhr.org

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