Anyone who has dealt with payroll can probably attest to how easy it is to end up with similar employees who are paid different amounts. It can happen for lots of reasons. For example:
- Someone who has been there a long time may have started at a lower rate and the raises haven’t progressed as fast as the market rate.
- Different hiring managers may not compare notes on their different policies on what to pay new employees, even if the roles are similar.
- Employers may base starting pay on an employee’s previous pay rather than on a predetermined rate for the role.
- Employees may have a similar-sounding role but have different experience or education levels.
- Jobs may sound similar at first but actually have different, less obvious responsibilities that account for different pay rates.
