The Pay Equity Communications Planner
The Pay Equity Communications Planner A talk track for discussing pay equity
TRUSAIC Employers are increasingly being asked to pro meaningful progress towards achieving pay equi vide environmental, social, and governance {ESG) ty in the workplace. What happens next is crucial metrics to their stakeholders. A component of the to your goals and how the world will evaluate your social aspect that has taken center stage over the efforts. Communicating pay equity to stakehold last several years is pay equity. ers is key and special attention should be given to your many different audiences. Pay equity is the concept of paying workers fairly, free of any type of discrimination. Incorporating We created The Pay Equity Communications pay equity into your workplace compensation Planner to help you share your pay equity prog structure is easier said than done. It requires ress in a thoughtful and actionable way. top-down commitment, a culture deeply rooted in diversity, equity, inclusion, and access {DEl&A), Throughout this document, we dive into the six and like any other business function, it requires steps you should take to develop your pay equity plan setup and strategy, with important metric communications plan as well as highlight specific monitoring and management. As the saying goes, details pertinent to different audiences. But first, "what gets measured, gets managed:' we wanted to talk about why you should think about your messaging. Let's say your organization is well underway with the above and you're on your way to making
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TRUSAIC The predicts that it will take another 136 years to close the Why communicating overall gender pay gap. Talking about pay pay equity matters equity internally and externally is key to solving the problem. Employers that focus on their pay equity efforts, introducing new legislation to make sure we fi including communications, experience a number nally close these longstanding gender and racial of positive benefits, including: pay disparities. Improved public, investor, and brand But above all, prioritizing pay equity matters perception since pay equity is a major because it's the right thing to do. The Great component of the social aspect of ESG Resignation of 2022 has highlighted the impor tance of treating employees fairly. Organizations Increased business performance, due that want to be successful in the future, should to most consumers wanting to purchase take stock in the idea of treating employees as products and services from businesses they want to be treated. that foster equal pay practices When you focus on making your employees hap Higher employee morale and engage py, they in turn will take care of your clients, and ment, since over 80% of workers are the cycle repeats. Pay equity is a fundamental more productive and involved when they component to creating a healthy, inclusive work perceive themselves as paid fairly culture. And planning on how you will communi cate this important priority internally and to the Greater employee retention and new world at large is critical. talent attraction because 75% of employees are more likely to apply for a Without further ado, it's time to get started with job that promotes pay transparency your pay equity communications plan. In addition to the many benefits associated with pay equity, it's also the law of the land in many countries worldwide. To further drive social good, states, localities, and entire regions are
TRUSAIC Q 0 m � Qo o� 0 0 o o o 0 0 0 � � 00 o Ao 0 07TO _§l 1J�� Cul (6) Cfij)�Cfij) cr:co firQfir ► ► ► ► ► STEP1 STEP2 STEP3 STEP4 STEPS STEP6 Develop Establish Schedule Prepare Take Put your your plan for different Communications for crisis ownership plan into discussing communication communication action pay equity mediums strategies Documenting your plan for sharing details about Depending on your audience, your discussions, pay equity is crucial for effectively communicat key points, metrics, and overall tone will differ. It ing progress to various internal and external is also important to note that while an organiza stakeholders. Your plan should be holistic and tion can promote pay transparency, that doesn't include everything from making the commitment translate to the same specific details to the differ to achieving pay equity as an organization to ent audiences. For example, an organization may communicating salary changes to individual em want to disclose to the individual employees the ployees, and everything in between. overall pay gaps and not the actual pay dispar ity after accounting for wage influencing factors Start by segmenting your different audiences. for each job specific category or as to a specific Once you know who you will need to address, employee. At the end of this document, we've in outline detailed instructions on how to talk about cluded a sample template to help you organize pay equity to each respective audience. Be sure your talking points for your different audiences. to dive into discussing progress, what kinds of equitable pay processes you currently have in Below we've provided examples of what to talk place, what steps you're taking to address pay about with select groups of people and what it is disparities, and what employees can expect to they care most about regarding pay equity. see moving forward.
TRUSAIC Executives and the C-suite C-suite leadership will be interested in learning about the impacts pay equity is having on your organization's bottom line, as well as investor and Investors and shareholders employee perception, and any legal risk. Your pay equity communications plan should provide This group cares most about the big picture and instructions for disclosing this information to up where your organization is headed. Your com per-level roles within your organization. munication efforts to this audience should be strategic and include key performance indicators In your communication efforts to this audience, that demonstrate holistic progress. highlight key data points to watch for throughout the pay equity journey, such as share price, ESG Share the details of where your organization is ratings, and compliance with any necessary legal headed with pay equity. Disclose the steps you've requirements imposed by state or international taken and what you anticipate to come in the fu regulators. ture. If, for example, you've recently conducted a pay equity audit, your communications plan may Executives at the top of your organization will also want to include how the analysis was conducted be interested to see how pay equity is improving and if you had any assistance from a third-party your organization's culture and overall business expert. performance. If you're experiencing higher em ployee morale, increased retention, and higher Details regarding your pay equity initiatives and output as a result of your pay equity efforts, then any partners you are working with to achieve include key performance indicators demonstrat them, can instill confidence in investors and ing such benefits in your communications. Be shareholders. Show them you're taking pay equity sure to emphasize that the greater success is seriously. coming from your various pay equity initiatives.
TRUSAIC HR and managers comparing employee compensation and how pay adjustments are determined. This will be crucial The next subset to plan strategic communica for communicating to employees directly impact tions to is your HR and managerial employees. In ed by any wage changes and equally as important terms of messaging, the main difference between for employees whose pay remains the same. this group of employees and the C-suite is these individuals will focus primarily on communicating In short, individual contributors need to under individual salary changes and less on big-picture stand why their pay is changing and why it's metrics. not changing. Your HR team and managers will be responsible for delivering these important HR and managers will be responsible for discuss discussions. ing changes in pay to the rest of your workforce. Your pay equity communications plan for HR and The communications plan for this group should managers should therefore include step-by-step also include verbiage about receiving assistance instructions for how pay equity is being deter from any third-party consultants. And your HR mined in your organization. As such, it's most leads should be able to talk about the details of beneficial to educate them on the methodology the partnership accurately. used for identifying pay inequity and remediating it when found. In developing your communications plan for HR and managers, consider providing them with Pay equity methodology includes the wage in various resources to assist them in talking about fluencing factors your organization takes into compensation with the remainder of your work account when paying employees differently. It force. Speaker prompts, FAQs, guides, and talking also includes how groupings are constructed for points could all be of immense value to this group.
TRUSAIC Employees should be encouraged to talk about pay if they are interested in doing so. Pay trans parency can facilitate a positive, open work en vironment. In fact, including your employees in the conversation around pay is a way of increasing inclusion sentiment - a key driver for advancing DEi initiatives. Choosing to address discussions of pay in an inclusive and direct way will help your organization navigate compensation communica tions strategically in a way that is sensitive to every employee's concerns. To learn more about the benefits of employee in clusion and pay transparency, read our research report, Creating a Culture of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, conducted by Harvard Business Review. Individual workers Download Trusaic HBR Research Report Unlike top-level leadership, individual workers will have a perspective on the organization's pay equity goals that impact them personally. The AHM.nlt SUMCQ communications plan for this group should fo cus on key terms such as: pay equity, pay gap, pay disparity, remediation, pay analysis groups (PAGs), and bona fide factors. Use these terms strategically and clearly so that individual con tributors understand how pay equity works. Creating a Culture of Diversity, It's critical to recognize that individual contribu Equity, and Inclusion: tor conversations are not all the same. Some Real Progress Requires Sustained Commitment individual contributors will be receiving compen sation adjustments with the timing and amounts potentially varying, and still other employees will not receive any adjustments. These various individual worker groups should understand the elements of a pay equity analysis and the importance of wage influencing factors _.,. TRUSAIC 1§11111) as they apply to your organization to eliminate or minimize apparent pay gaps.
TRUSAIC Legal considerations to wait for a pay inequity lawsuit to address the issue when it is too late to be ahead of it in terms Among the reasons for conducting a pay equity of messaging. audit is to prevent or minimize the risk of pay dis crimination lawsuits. Given this risk, conducting a Managing risk can involve determining which pay equity audit under attorney guidance is key. metrics are communicated, how granular the de An organization can conduct multiple audits for tails are of those metrics, and the timing of such multiple purposes. communications. For example, a federal contractor may want to With respect to pay disparities, the timing and the conduct a pay equity audit for OFCCP compliance granularity of the details should be coordinated purposes and a separate pay equity audit to as by counsel and may be appropriate after targeted sess litigation risk. While the former may not be remediation is achieved. If you announce to your protected from disclosure under the attorney cli employees the metrics showing that there are pay ent privilege, the latter may be protected. Under disparities, i.e., pay differences between women that framework, such risk should be managed to and men and/or among race/ethnicities that are recognize the competing risk of hiding your head not justified, you could be significantly exposing in the sand. yourself to discrimination lawsuit risk. Organizations today gather data about most met Other resulting metrics that you may want to an rics affecting their business so to ignore the pay nounce are diversity metrics, which are not as equity data sends the message of indifference or, closely aligned with pay discrimination. This is worse, indicates that the organization is allowing how many organizations have chosen to address pay inequity to flourish. This message is loud and DEi metric transparency. clear to the stakeholders. The riskiest strategy is
TRUSAIC On the other hand, moving away from resulting Examples of commitment, to corroborate a mes metrics, if you announce to your employees the sage of commitment, include expansion of the metrics associated with the process, such as your talent acquisition to focus on more racially diverse commitment, progress and achievement, the risk schools and the implementation of employee re is managed. These communicated metrics are sources groups. not about the resulting metrics such as the raw demographics and pay data for each employee or Examples of achievement in gender and intersec the resulting pay disparities. Rather, these com tional pay equity by a third party, like the EDGE munications should be about the commitment, Certification. As many organizations still struggle progress, and achievement metrics. with pay equity, this certification can be for the as sessment, progress or achievement phase, each Examples of progress and achievement metrics demonstrating to stakeholders your commitment can include the pace at which women move up in gender and intersectional equity, including pay the corporate ladder as compared to men (and/ equity. or based on race/ethnicity), the changes in the salary differential between women and men in similar jobs (and/or based on race/ethnicity). Transform Your Workforce: Measure, Accelerate & Get Certified in Gender & lntersectional Equity.
TRUSAIC You may be familiar with the expression, "it's not when deciding which channels you'll use for which what you say, but how you say it" and the state message. ment couldn't be any more appropriate in the context of pay equity. The delivery of sensitive To further help you understand the importance of information relating to pay is critical. key messaging through different channels, we've provided some examples on the following pages. When creating your communications plan for talking about pay equity, consider the different communication channels you will use for deliver ing key messaging. Email, intranet messaging, social media, press releases, reports, etc., are all viable channels for communicating pay equity progress internally and externally. However, given the sensitivity around pay, some communications will require more intimate, per sonal discussion. For example, you may not want to discuss a particular employee's changes in pay via email. This type of messaging calls for real time communications, preferably one-on-one and in-person if possible. On the other side of the spectrum, achieving your company's goal of eliminating any identified pay mes Reaches disparity within a particular department could I Settlement very well be communicated in person during a ______ _____ reement .,.... company all-hands meeting. Discretion is needed
TRUSAIC Sc...ch Q m Out Company v Our Purpose &-Impact v Our Stones v ll"IYGCtOtS v We believe in egualP-aJ for equal work. McDonald's McDonald's Vice President of Global Business Services, Debbie Ballard, wrote a blog post that discusses the company values relating to pay equity. She discusses the progress the company has made, its current representation composition, and its long-term goals. This outlet of communication provides all stakeholders with great visibility into McDonald's core pay eq uity goals, values, and current position on pay equity, diversity, and inclusion. While it doesn't dive into the specifics of employee pay adjustments, it's a great way of demonstrating to the public, investors, and employees that it's taken a serious position on pay equity. You can read the blog post here, as well as explore their other broader, pay equity and D&I messaging.
TRUSAIC Apple Publicly available right now is Apple's United Kingdom Gender Pay Gap Report for the 2020 tax year. The report includes specific data, metrics, and visualizations to illustrate the progress it's made towards achieving pay equity. The report includes valuable insights into where the company was and where it's going. This information provides investors, shareholders, and government bodies with critical details for evaluating the company's commitment to pay equity. Apple used the mandatory UK Gender Pay Gap Report as an opportunity to publicly showcase its commit ment to advancing gender equality by making it available to the public. The UK Gender Pay Gap Report is tangible evidence that Apple is making meaningful pay equity progress.
TRUSAIC general motors u.t•L1nt1r LL»' �WI ll►U :,.1.::.t1 UP,.�(. UN!>UC... Lont.ct ESG ESG MATERIAL OOWNLOAOS ESG·RELATEO MANAGCMCNT GOVCRNANCC TOPICS &ARCHIVC POLICICS IN THIS SECTION Creabng An lnclus,ve Culture DE&I Governance & ERGS Equity •I GM Transportation Equity Suppli,.r Div1tr1ity l>l&I IJ.:Jta Everyone at General Motors is expected to uphold the values and behaviors that are integral to our culture-and foster an environment where we can openly and authentically contribute our best work, free from fear. General Motors GM is one of the only companies to achieve worldwide pay equity and their website showcases it. Since 2001 GM has been making strides to achieve pay equity, increase representation and foster a culture of inclusion, and they have the data to back it up. Similar to Apple's report, GM houses pay equity goals, commitment, and hard-evidence data on its website in its own section. There's an entire navigation system built-in as well. GM takes its pay equity commit ment a step further by providing it within the greater context of ESG. Disclosing your pay equity efforts allows all stakeholders to see you're committed to bettering the world through environmental and social governance. This is good for a number of reasons, most notably, it instils confidence that your brand is one concerned for the future of our planet and the well-being of humanity. Choosing to share its pay equity and DEi information this way is also great for demonstrating progress to investors, governing bodies, shareholders, and the general public.
TRUSAIC EDGEplus t.=OREAL USA t:·oreal USA / L'Oreol USA News /commitments/ L'USA Receives New EDGEplus Certification L'Oreal Strategic organizations take their pay equity commitment and communications a step further by receiving certification. �Creal USA for example is EDGE certified following an independent, third-party verifica tion. In a press release, �Creal outlines what the EDGE Certification means and how it confirms where a company stands in terms of gender and intersectional equity, including pay equity. The press release states: "EDGEplus certification was granted to L'Oreal USA after an independent verification of the findings by third-party auditors. L'Oreal USA's certification accelerates its progress on a journey toward gender equity and gender balance, inclusive of multiple dimensions of diversity at all levels of the company. This work was first certified in 2014 when L'Oreal USA was one of the first companies worldwide - and the first company in the United States - to be EDGE certified." Certifications are a great way of communicating pay equity to all stakeholders. However, to be reliable and credible, such certifications need to be the result of rigorous verification processes carried out by independent certifiers.
TRUSAIC cm Riot Games Reaches 0 Global Settlement Agreement Riot Games is an interesting example because several years ago the gaming giant found itself in a bad spot, due to a gender discrimination lawsuit brought forth by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). The company has since taken immense action to resolve identified gender workforce inequities. In December of 2021, the company reached a $100 million agreement with the DFEH. The example below outlines the end result of the case and showcases Riot's commitment to ensuring pay equity in the workplace. In a crisis situation, the company responded appropriately and immediately took accountability for the ac cusations. While a reactive approach, Riot is making strides to transform its brand and company culture. Here's an excerpt from a statement the company recently made: "Three years ago, Riot was at the heart of what became a reckoning in our industry. We had to face the fact that despite our best intentions, we hadn't always lived up to our values. As a company we stood at a crossroads; we could deny the shortcomings of our culture, or we could apologize, correct course, and build a better Riot. We chose the latter. We're incredibly grateful to every Rioter who has worked to create a culture where inclusivity is the norm, where we're deeply committed to fairness and equality, and where embracing diversity fuels creativity and innovation." To be clear, Riot is not yet a leading example of how to approach pay equity, diversity, and inclusion within the workplace. The nature of their case called for a complete transformation of the company culture and workplace policies. Rather, they're an example of how to respond to an extreme crisis situation regarding pay equity and DEi. Riot demonstrates how organizations can right a wrong. DISCLAIMER: The Pay Equity Communications Planner was created using internal expertise and publicly available pay equity information. Named organizations do not imply a relationship with Trusaic.
TRUSAIC f After you've established specific instructions for Be sure to factor in room for unplanned messag communicating pay equity to each audience, con ing as well. If you've made breakthrough progress, sider the importance of regularly scheduled mes hit a major milestone unexpectedly, or established saging. Pay equity is important to a lot of people. a plan for accelerating your progress towards To address each of your different audiences' achieving pay equity, it should be celebrated and needs, your overall plan should include regularly that may call for unplanned communications. scheduled updates on progress. Bottom line? Compensation is an important topic While there is no set cadence for communicat for most people, so it's critical that you regularly ing pay equity progress, your approach should provide status updates. be systematic and consistent. You could, for in stance, align your pay equity communications with annual reporting. Pay equity management, You want everyone to feel after all, should be treated just like any other business function and warrants thorough mea comfortable about the surement and monitoring. What matters most progress you're making, is that your overall pay equity strategy includes routine progress announcements. and actively communicating that will help. If you're taking a more aggressive approach to achieve pay equity, meaning you're trying to get there as quickly as possible, it would be best to announce communications on a more frequent basis. Work with the necessary stakeholders to de velop a schedule that works for your organization.
TRUSAIC It's not something anyone wants, but crises do arise. If your organization finds itself in an un avoidable legal or otherwise public crisis related Above all - it's best, to to pay equity, you're going to want to have a plan in place for minimizing lasting damages. be honest, and open. Recognize fault where Your pay equity communication plan should in clude actionable steps for resolving crises that it's due, don't pass the restore brand confidence and trust in all of your blame, and instead take key stakeholders. Include a designated point of responsibility. contact to address press and investor inquiries. It's also important to get ahead of the news as it circulates in these types of scenarios to control the narrative so make sure you're proactive in re solving the identified issue. Above all - it's best, to be honest, and open. Recognize fault where it's due, don't pass the blame, and instead take responsibility. This owned accountability is critical for rectifying company mishaps, which brings us to the next step of your pay equity communications plan.
TRUSAIC Shared accountability is critical for many busi Organizations that take ownership in this manner ness functions and pay equity is no different. To not only see greater progress in achieving pay ensure no one person is held responsible for pay equity, they're also further along in the pay equity equity, create a committee within your organiza maturity model. tion for holding department heads accountable for pay equity communications. Download The Pay Equity Maturity Model Your pay equity communications plan should clearly identify specific individuals, what they're SAIC responsible for, how they will be accountable Ascending the Pay Equity Maturity Model (through, for example, incentives), and how they Early level understanding of pay equity No robust pay equity measurement sysh:1m in place t-:� are actively communicating progress in and out Lacking DEi culture Level 1: No measurement of employee inclusion Foundational Low compliance with pay e,quity laws side of your organization. Poor workforce diversity , and communk:ated Beyond tasking specific individuals with com Initiatives are underway for achieving pay equity Pay equity, diYersity measurement system in place and . municating pay equity, taking ownership means being used 0� Inclusion sentiment measured and acted upon making explicit efforts to achieve the initiative. Actr.'ety meeting with employees to inform of progress Level 2: towards pay equity, leveraging their feedback Programmatic ComplLant with pay equity laws Some organizations ensure success by tying Improving diversity representation organizational leaders' compensation, like the onstrat• progr•as CEO's, to goals around pay equity. Pay equity, divenoity, hiring, promotion, and retention equity goals achieved Utiliz.ing tools to ensure alt new pay decisions are fair and competitive Progress. achievement, and sustainability efforts This type of initiative ensures that pay equity communicated to all stakeholders ESG and CSR reporting in place gets prioritized and it demonstrates a commit Highest EDGE leYel certificatic.n aohieYed Leader compensation tied to DEi goal achievement ment from the top-down. Additionally, it allows Pay equity is an ongoing effort. It requires long-term commitment. for everyone to get involved and promotes shared TRUSAIC accountability across the entire organization. 3530 WIishire Btvd, Los Angeles, CA 90010 TRUSAIC.COU d1soc:war@trusa1c com
TRUSAIC Once you've documented your communications plan, it's time to put it into action. But if you don't cur rently have a system in place for establishing your pay equity goals and creating lasting change within your organization, then you need to take a step back. We invite you to explore pay equity solutions that can help you develop your pay equity strategy for elim inating pay gaps, disparities and for communicating progress along the way. That's where Trusaic comes in. A Partner in Pay Equity Need help developing your pay equity communications plan and strategy? Contact Trusaic to learn about PayParity®, the all-in-one pay equity auditing, diversity and inclusion software solution with dedicated expert support. We're here to help you achieve pay equity. Visit payparity.com to get started today [email protected] I trusaic.com
TRUSAIC Audience Aspects of pay equity that matter most to this group: Specific business goals/outcomes: Talking points for communicating pay equity: Notes:
