Money makes the world go round, a truth as reliable as death and taxes. Companies often lure and retain high performing employees, particularly executives, through promises of incentive compensation. Sophisticated employees seek certainty through a written agreement specifying their compensation package, while employers often insist on maintaining a large degree of discretion over performance-based compensation. This tension frequently results in a written agreement that contains language so broad that its enforceability becomes questionable. READ MORE
Figure raises $7.5M to help startup employees better understand their compensation
The topic of compensation has historically been a delicate one that has left many people — especially startup employees — wondering just what drives what can feel like random decisions around pay and equity.
Last June, software engineers (and housemates) Miles Hobby and Geoffrey Tisserand set about trying to solve the problem for companies by developing a data-driven platform that aims to help companies structure their compensation plans and transparently communicate them to candidates. READ MORE
Montana to end extra unemployment pay due to worker shortage
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday the state will end its participation next month in the federal unemployment program, as the state struggles with a worker shortage.
Beginning June 27, unemployed workers in the state will no longer receive $300 in extra weekly benefits, forgoing payments that were approved through Sept. 6. READ MORE
What the Executive Order Requiring Federal Contractors to Pay a $15 Minimum Wage Will Mean
It will take some time for the full scale and scope of President Biden’s recent executive order directing federal contractors to pay a $15 minimum wage for their workers starting next year to be seen.
Biden issued an executive order on April 27 that builds on one from President Obama in February 2014, which required federal contractors to pay their workers $10.10 per hour. Currently, the minimum wage for workers on federal contracts is $10.95 per hour and the tipped minimum wage is $7.65 per hour. READ MORE
The American worker had been earning less throughout the pandemic. That ended in March.
Various economic indicators are surpassing their pre-pandemic highs as stimulus and reopening drive the country toward a full recovery.
US wages are the latest to rebound.
Salaries and hourly wages finally leaped above their February 2020 peak in March 2021, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Employee payment across the country rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $9.78 trillion from $9.67 trillion, marking a new record high and an eleventh consecutive climb. READ MORE
Wage theft: His paycheck bounced. It got worse from there.
On a Tuesday afternoon last June, Humberto was yanking old wires from the walls of a middle school in suburban Birmingham, Alabama, when his cellphone rang.
Humberto’s wife, who had just returned from her weekly trip to the grocery store, was on the line. “Our account is negative,” she said. READ MORE
How pay transparency can help close the wage gap and advance DEI
At the start of the pandemic, software engineer and aspiring CIO Kerry Fields was laid off. In an already challenging time, she unexpectedly had to begin searching for work during one of the biggest job crises of the past several decades. She poured over job boards, networked virtually, worked with mentors, and took every opportunity to continue building her portfolio and professional skills. She also applied for upwards of 100 jobs. READ MORE
Gender Pay Gaps in Nonprofits Are Even Greater When There Is Room for Salary Negotiations
With increased media attention and political campaigns focusing on the gender pay gap, the fact that women — on average — are paid less than men, has become an important public discussion. While much of the focus has been on the corporate sector, a new study that looked at executive compensation at nonprofit organizations found that women earn 8.9% less than men with the gap becoming greater when there is room for salary negotiations. READ MORE
4 Potential Problems with Equity Compensation, and How to Solve Them
Anyone who receives stock options, restricted stock units or other forms of equity compensation needs to understand how they work and how they are taxed. Otherwise, you could miss out on a great opportunity, or get hit with a surprise bill. READ MORE
Tesla told to provide documents involving Musk compensation
A Delaware judge on Monday ordered lawyers representing Tesla Inc. directors to turn over certain communications that CEO Elon Musk may have shared with the company’s top in-house attorneys before the board approved a compensation plan in 2018 that could net Musk more than $50 billion. READ MORE
Wage theft: Methodology for analysis of Labor data
To perform this analysis, The Center for Public Integrity analyzed data provided by the Labor Department in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. The data used in the analysis covers the period from October 2005 through September 2020 and includes all cases in which the agency determined there were minimum wage or overtime violations. READ MORE
General Electric shareholders reject CEO Culp's pay deal
A majority of shareholders at General Electric Co's annual meeting rejected the pay packages for named executive officers, including CEO Larry Culp, whose compensation for 2020 tallied $73.2 million. READ MORE
Negotiating Salary? Here's A Simple Yet Powerful Trick
Silence is one of the most simple yet most powerful negotiation tools, but it’s traditionally positioned as an intimidation tactic that prompts a person to speak to their own disadvantage.
New research published in the Journal of Applied Psychology finds that pausing for at least three seconds during a negotiation has benefits beyond making someone uncomfortable. READ MORE
3 trap questions in salary negotiation (and a script for answering them)
Going through the interview process was stressful enough, but now there are trap questions during salary negotiations?
Yes, yes there are. The employer’s job is to get the best candidate at the lowest cost while the new employee is trying to get the highest compensation package. READ MORE
Just 10 percent of companies cut executive pay in 2020
Only around 10 percent of TSX companies issued some form of pay cut to CEOs, other executives, or their board of directors in 2020, according to research from Diligent.
And where cuts were implemented, they were minimal. ‘Using 2019 realized compensation as the basis, we find that the pay cuts issued by the companies represent only about 1 percent of total projected realized pay,’ write the study authors. READ MORE
2021 Private Equity Compensation Report Shows Continued Upward Trend in Compensation
he 2021 Private Equity and Venture Capital Compensation Report shows that private equity and venture capital compensation is up again this year, marking the seventh straight year of compensation gains. The year was unprecedented with the COVID-19 pandemic, and many respondents noted concerns about fundraising and job security in this environment. READ MORE
Wells Fargo scores the latest narrow win for CEO pay
Wells Fargo & Co's executive pay plan for 2020 received backing from only about 57% of investor votes on Tuesday, a narrow win for the company and the latest evidence of tougher scrutiny shareholders have put on CEO compensation this year.
CEO and President Charles Scharf was paid $20.4 million in 2020, down from $34.3 million in 2019, when he was first named to lead the bank, according to its proxy statement filed in March. On an annualized basis his total direct compensation in 2020 fell about 12% from $23 million the prior year, according to a January filing. READ MORE
Top NFL draft pick will earn this much upon entering league
The 2021 NFL Draft will begin Thursday and the Jacksonville Jaguars are on the clock.
The Jaguars, barring a shocking surprise, are expected to select Clemson standout quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 pick. Lawrence played three seasons with the Tigers and won a national championship with the team. He recorded 10,098 passing yards and 90 touchdown passes. READ MORE
Biden administration to issue executive order to increase minimum wage for federal contractors
The Biden administration is expected to issue an executive order Tuesday that will require all federal contractors to pay their employees working for federal agencies a $15 minimum wage.
Progressives have been trying to enact a $15 minimum wage hike on a national level but fell short of the votes needed last month to include the proposal in the massive $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill. Seven Democrats joined Republicans to oppose the measure. READ MORE
The state of compensation in 2021
Due to the financial strain of the coronavirus pandemic, 2020 was a revealing year for many in terms of money, income and personal finance habits. Just in time for Financial Literacy Awareness Month in April, Elements Global Services released its 2021 State of Compensation report. Here are some of the key statistics and takeaways from the report along with insights and predictions about the future from Rick Hammell, the founder and CEO of Elements Global Services. READ MORE