Why Do Bosses Want Their Employees’ Salaries to Be Secret?

In a narrow vote this week, the Senate politely smothered the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would have protected workers’ rights to compare and discuss their wages at work. Aimed at dismantling workplace “pay secrecy” policies, the legislation built on the 2009 Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which strengthens safeguards for women and other protected groups against wage discrimination.

According to a 2003 study, “Over one-third of private sector employers…recently surveyed admitted to having specific rules prohibiting employees from discussing their pay with coworkers. In contrast, only about 1 in 14 employers have actively adopted a ‘pay openness’ policy,” which explicitly protects workplace discussion of wages. A 2011 survey estimated that 50 percent of workers are subject to some kind of restriction on discussing their pay with coworkers—slightly more women than men, with the largest concentration among private sector workers (about 60 percent, compared to less than 20 percent of public workers). The gaps vary along demographic lines: women workers, single parents and married childless women tend to face higher rates of these secrecy controls than do married mothers. And although civil servants generally had far lower rates of pay secrecy, the practice was more prevalent among women in the public sector.

Source: Portside < The Nation, Michelle Chen, April 11, 2014

It takes a Community for Thrive-able Wage Vision

When it comes to being a business responsible for the well-being of employees some lessons can be learned from a company that started off as a corner grocer in 1902, re-branding itself in 1982 as "Zingerman's", then setting forth a vision in 1994 that extended to 2020. Adapting to employees as partners and assets to its business is a key factor in success.

A Thrive-Able Wage Vision

Zingerman’s Community of Businesses (ZCoB) ‘thrive-able wage’ vision, which was drafted in 2012, includes the following:

We [are raising] wages to a “thrive-able” level throughout the organization and there is a powerful multiplier effect going on. Higher wages lead to higher morale and is the engine that keeps everything spiraling upward. In many cases, productivity increases due to lowered stress levels in the lives of the people in our organization because of assurance that their financial needs are covered….We have less people needing to rely on forms of public assistance like SNAP card benefits and the Washtenaw Health Plan. We maintain the offering of assistance from our Community Chest because it serves as the safety net for employees without personal networks of support or who face disastrous emergencies outside of their control.

Zingerman's Community of Businesses

A fuller description can be found on the ZCoB website.

• Zingerman's Delicatessen
• Zingerman's Bakehouse
• Zing Train
• Zingerman's Catering and Events
• Zingerman's Mail Order
• Zingerman's Creamery
• Zingerman's Roadhouse
• Zingerman's Coffee Company
• Zingerman's Candy Manufactory

Zingerman's Commitment to Diversity

A broader description can be found on the ZCoB website.

Awaking to Radical Commitment

Back in 2010, a few Zingernauts asked the question, “Does our company reflect the diversity of people in our local community? Could we be more inclusive?” Led by Paul Saginaw, their persistence led all of us to realize that there were untapped opportunities to show all kinds of people the “love and care in all our actions” as our mission states. We wanted to do better at giving the Zingerman’s experience to every guest and every employee. We knew that formally committing to diversity at Zingerman’s would yield better decisions and leadership, in addition to being the right thing for the people in our community. 

Fast food workers sue McDonalds over wage practices

McDonald’s workers in three U.S. states filed lawsuits this week against the fast-food chain, alleging it is stealing wages by forcing them to work off the clock, by cheating them out of overtime and by denying them rest breaks.

The seven suits were announced on Thursday by the employees’ lawyers and were filed Wednesday and Thursday in New York, California and Michigan.
In Michigan, two lawsuits were filed against McDonald’s and two Detroit-area franchise owners by workers claiming they were told to come to work, only to be told to wait without pay until there were enough customers in the restaurant.

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Source: http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/3/13/fast-food-workerssuemcdonaldsoverwagepractices.html