Don’t cut pay

I must admit to reading this article with some bemusement. If Gome’s intent was to write some vague nonsense just to encourage comment, fair enough. But otherwise this article is lacking logic and common sense.

At a time when bank managers are – rightly or wrongly – being severely criticised for their pay packets AND organisations are struggling to offer employee pay rises, Norris and the CBA should be applauded for bucking both trends.

To suggest an extra 5% would make a difference to the 1.5% across-the-board pay rise is just plain silly, and you don’t need economics to see that – just simple arithmetic.

Gome then goes on to make a completely irrelevant connection to pay freezes, when in fact the CBA news is pointedly NOT about pay freezes. It’s about a CEO taking a pay CUT while at the same time other employees are getting a pay RISE.

Gome’s other comment about pay freezes is equally bemusing. She says, “Business owners whose results are going backwards should think twice about pay freezes across the board.” Where exactly does she think this extra money will come from? Sure, nobody likes cutting or freezing pay, but sometimes it’s inevitable, especially if the best rational alternative is redundancies.

Her statement, “Your staff are your competitive edge; providing superior, innovative service while everyone is cutting back”, is staggering. If you really ARE providing superior, innovative service, why are your results going backwards???

She goes on to say, “For those who work harder than ever, let them know there is something on the table as a reward.” Finally, something we agree on! But we probably disagree on what form that reward takes. For many organisations, that reward is keeping their job! Yes, I agree it’s a poor motivator, and definitely not the sort of stick you want to be using in the long term. But hey, carrots are in short supply right now.

And the final comment about bosses not cutting their own salary beggars belief. Seeing the boss take a pay cut might be the most motivating thing in some workplaces.

The monkey/peanuts analogy is COMPLETELY misplaced. Surely Gome isn’t arguing that Norris should NOT have taken a pay cut because he’s now working for peanuts??? But what other inference can we draw from her argument?