Socially just pay

Context

This workshop requires a bit more preparation than some of our other templates, because it is aiming to facilitate and simplify collective decisions around finances (via the Socially Just Pay Calculator tool) AND includes some potentially sensitive conversation topics (how we feel about how we are paid for our work). There are extra templates that aim to make this a bit more straightforward, but it might take some time to get your head around the different parts of the session to feel confident facilitating it.

It is designed for an existing group of up to 12 people who believe that a socially-just / needs-based / equitable pay structure is right for them, but need to understand how viable different choices of adjustments could be for the group, based on their values and their budget restraints.

It may also be useful to individuals within a group who can use the calculator to test out the financial realities (for individuals and the organisation) of different models.

Plan

~4hrs, though times will vary considerably based on the number of team mates, the level of pre-existing discussion/agreement and the number of proposals and pay models being discussed. In some contexts, multiple sessions may be needed, with space to amend proposed adjustments, based on needs or differences that have emerged.

Materials

• How to use the Socially Just Pay Calculator INSTRUCTIONS
• Socially just pay adjustment proposal VOTING TEMPLATE
• Financial viability table TEMPLATE
• Pay model VOTING TEMPLATE
• Pay adjustment agreement table TEMPLATE

Prep requirements

• A collective familiarity with the basics of socially-just/needs-based/equitable pay structures;
• Facilitator familiar with the tool and who can be sensitive to the range of personal feelings that can arise in conversations about pay/money;
• Ideally a co-facilitator/note-taker who can help with writing up proposals/amendments along the way;
• One or more team members with a solid understanding of the group’s current financial situation, around the impacts of different increases in projected budget that would arise from different increases in collective pay (e.g. we can afford a £5k/year increase in our wage bill; we cannot afford a £20k/year increase in our wage bill);
• A laptop to share around, ideally with a bigger screen or projector connected;
• List of staff names, days worked/week and any other notable information;
• A rough sense of what a baseline wage should be (i.e. how much everyone would be paid in a totally flat pay structure);
• Ideally some time inputting a proposal base wage (the amount everyone would start from, if there were no adjustments), staff names and days-per-week into the socially just pay calculator tool, to save time when comparing the costs of different models.

Prep requirements

We’d love to hear your feedback about this workshop (and related resources)…