Are You Paying Your Employees Enough?

Let’s be honest—the majority of employers want to get the best talent for the least amount of money, and every employee wants to be compensated well for their skills. But with all the secrecy surrounding compensation and total rewards, getting everyone on the same page can be tricky.

Having a solid compensation strategy is key to attracting and retaining a highly productive, highly engaged team. After all, if your employees feel their compensation doesn’t accurately reflect their value, all the engagement initiatives in the world won’t make a difference.

“A solid compensation strategy is key to attracting and retaining a highly productive, highly engaged team!” 

Want to make sure your compensation philosophy is on point? Here are four important things to consider:

Know where you stand.

Know what your employees’ jobs are worth. Review your organization’s job descriptions so you know what fair pay looks like for the duties involved. Then do some digging to determine whether the compensation you’re offering falls below, matches, or sits above market levels. You can get a good idea of industry rates by checking out sites like PayScale, and by searching job postings with similar job titles. While many employers don’t put details about salary in their postings, others do, so use that information to assess whether you’re compensating employees fairly.

Share your salary.

When you’re recruiting, it can be tempting to play your cards close to your chest as you attempt to get the best candidate for the lowest possible salary. But withholding compensation details isn’t always the best way to go. Many unionized employers are obligated to share salary information. But even if you don’t have to, making sure everyone is on the same page pay-wise is an easy way to streamline your recruitment process.

By sharing your wage range with your future employees you’re establishing trust and transparency, and kicking off your employment relationship on a positive note. As well, sharing salary information in your posting promotes pay equity. Multiple studies have shown that women are less likely to negotiate starting salary, so if you’re not sharing the wage, men are more likely to end up with a higher starting salary for the same job. You’re also saving time by allowing candidates to self-select out before they apply if the compensation package isn’t what they expect.

Know what’s coming.

Keep on top of current wage legislation, and be aware of future minimum wage increases and when they’ll come into effect. Currently, BC has the lowest minimum wage of all the provinces, at $10.45 an hour. If you weren’t already aware, in September 2016, the minimum wage in BC will increase by 40 cents to $10.85 an hour, and will increase again to $11.25 by September 2017. Keep an eye on the horizon so you aren’t blindsided by the changes and can build future increases into your budget.

Consider total rewards.

The dollar line on the pay check matters, but other forms of rewards can be just as important. Flexible work hours, more vacation time, the ability to work remotely, subsidized fitness activities, employer-supported volunteering… the list is endless, and there’s lots of room to be creative. The key? Find out what your employees value, and tailor your total rewards to give them more of what they want.

Can’t afford to offer them a raise? Check out this list of low-cost rewards for ways to show employees they’re highly valued without breaking the bank.

Your Engaged HR Assignment:

Is your current compensation package tailored to your team? To make sure you’re putting your efforts where they’ll count, conduct a quick survey to figure out what rewards make the most sense for your employees.

Not sure if your compensation package is on par with your competition’s? Feel free to give us a call!