Right Now! is a retail company manufacturing clothing products for young and fashion-inclined women. Through the efforts of its new management, the company was able to expand and even put up a website that has been earning considerable recognition. However, due to the growing availability of information to the public as well as the curiosity of some, the disclosure of supposedly confidential data occurred in the company. Specifically, the information on the employees’ salaries and their bonuses somehow has reached public knowledge. The management however, did not expect that this information will result to a strong impact to the employees. The management is then trying to determine whether the salary of each employee of the company should be made public permanently.
One of the solutions proposed by the company’s vice president, Charlie, is to continue informing the employees of how much money each of them makes. While the solution may sound eccentric, there are several factors and benefits that support this position. As Charlie stated, the accessibility of salary information to the employees is something that is difficult to control nowadays (Case, 2001). For one thing, salary information can be acquired or seen through various means. Salary guides and news on expected salary increases are sample data that are readily available as printed documents (PR Newswire, 2004). In addition, information on salaries is just as easily searched using the internet. Then of course, there will be employees who are adept in gathering data and consulting reliable resources.
This reason is further supported by Rawl’s (1999) first justice theory where it has been stated that each person must have equal rights to the basic liberties that others have access to. In the case of the Right Now! Company, other employees have been aware of the company staffs’ salary information; considering that they are all working under the same system or environment, the right to know must then be observed as a general rule. The is further supported by another principle of the justice theory which stresses that inequalities in the social and economic sector must be resolved so as to make positions and offices more open to others; this principle also helps in promoting fair and equal opportunities for all. In one article, the salaries of the teachers were also made public for the main purpose of resolving inequalities (Wykes, 2005). By doing so, several benefits can be acquired.
One of which is the establishment of a more honest working environment. The information on salary has long been considered a confidential matter; however, if this will be made public, employees will feel more trusted. In turn, this could also encourage them to become more open with their superiors, making problem areas in the company easily understood and immediately resolved. In this aspect, it should be considered that company operations is not entirely on quality and quantity production; among others, the management should also give priority to emotions, feelings and thoughts of the employees. Exerting effort to understand these factors will likely result to better and stronger company-employee relations.
Another important benefit this position can bring about is the establishment of a more defined and standard means of giving salaries to the employees. It has been mentioned that Right Now! gives salary increases based on performance (Case, 2001). This is an important company protocol that should be discussed with the employees since it involves their development within the company. By making salary information public and understanding how salary rates are decided, employees will be able to understand the differences in their salaries. In the process, this can actually serve as a driver to encourage employees to be better and more productive employees. The comprehension of this company information will make employees more knowledgeable about their performance and how they are being appraised; placing this matter as official company protocol on the other hand, will promote compliance.
From this reason, it has been stressed that making salary information accessible to the employees is the appropriate position as it is beneficial to both the company and the employees. The employees will understand the operations of the company more and the significance of their performance to its success; this will help them build directions for their career and professional development. The company on the other hand, will be able to obtain more driven employees, resulting to better business outcomes. Furthermore, openness between both parties will also support more harmonious human relations, which is also essential in successful organizational operations.
The disclosure of the salary information to the employees is likely to rouse negative reactions from some employees; however, as mentioned above, there are ways on how these downsides can be addressed effectively. In addition, the fact that such position will benefit both sides of the argument makes this position a more sensible side to take. Alternatively, the company may choose to keep the salary information private; the CEO could just explain how the salaries of the employees are given and how they could develop further in the company in terms of compensation. The employees will eventually forget about the issue and normal operations will resume. This is a less complicated alternative of course; however, there are some downsides. For one thing, this solution only promotes biased assimilation, wherein decisions made only favor one side of the arguing party (Robinson, 1997). In theory, it has been stated that personal preferences should not be the main influence on how one should decide. What is right for the company alone may not be right for the employees. Rather than decide based on biases, the company should prioritized the one that would be beneficial for the company and the employees. Specifically, what is beneficial and just should be preferred over the easy way out.
Van Slyke (1999) also noted that some managers tend to choose the easy and less complicated option so as not to hurt others’ feelings or act impolite. However, the author noted that, organizational conflicts should be addressed by the confrontation skills of the managers. By means of confrontation, conflicting parties are able to face, analyze and settle the issue; they are allowed to generate views and ideas, which can help achieve clear settlement. Aside from these, confronting rather than avoiding the problem generates the feeling that both sides are willing to resolve the matter by hearing each other out. Face to face interaction also exhibits respect, openness and commitment (Van Slyke, 1999). In conclusion, Right Now! should implement the continuous disclosure of the salary information of the employees as this position will be advantageous for the company and the employees both for the present and in the future.
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