when starting a co-op, what is your opinion on paying everyone the same wage, regardless of skill level. can a worker exploit another worker if they have a difference in wages? at what point does exploitation begin and how to you minimize conflict if wages are unequal?
Do you like this suggestion?
Showing 3 reactions
Clearly not everyone deserve the same wage, education, experience and location are big factors against total wage equality but things can be fair even if they are not completely equal.
EDUCATION: A doctor deserves more than a nurse. The doctor can do far more, the doctor has license, the doctor had to go to school longer and probably has a far larger student loan to pay off. Nurses are over worked and we need to do more for them, training more nurses to reduce workload would be a big step, I just can’t see boosting them to a doctors wage.
EXPERIANCE: An experienced mechanic has devloped the skills to repair problems the younger mechanics that spent the same amount of time in a technical school can’t handle yet. The experienced mechanic often is tasked to continue the hands on training of the younger mechanics, he deserves more but the younger guys can reach that level over time.
LOCATION: A regional coffee chain might have a stores in sleepy outer suburbs and stores in the high rent district downtown and all the places in between If you paid everyone the same the busy stores in high rent district will likely have trouble finding employees. The employees will line for jobs where it is cheaper to live and skip the time and expense of commuting downtown.
ODDITIES: Jobs with a high risk of injury or death should receive higher wages (or a least receive very low cost life insurance and medical converge) 1. Logging workers
2. Fishers and related fishing workers
3. Aircraft pilot and flight engineers
4. Roofers
5. Structural iron and steel workers
6. Refuse and recyclable material collectors
7. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
Jobs with a lot of travel that disrupts normal home life should receive more compensation.
High stress jobs should receive more compensation
WHAT SHOULD WAGES BE SET AT?
What should the differences in wages be, NO MORE WAGE SECRECY clauses allowed in employment would be a good first step. The second step is limiting or highly taxing excessive top management wages and perks, their jobs are often highly stressful but are they worth 400 times a typical worker. Bonus should be a percent of the wages earned in a year, a good year could 5% for everyone in company. No big checks for the top and nothing or coins for everyone else. The worker co op model solves many of these problems.