Posted on 04/14/2015 10:51:42 AM PDT by Red Badger
And its founder is taking a big pay cut to make it happen
Credit card processor Gravity Payments is making its minimum wage $70,000 a year, the New York Times reports. Founder Dan Price recnetly announced the ambitious plan to a room of about 120 staffers.
The raises will take place over the next three years, with about 70 Gravity employees set to see fatter paychecks because of the new policy. Price himself is taking a pay cut from about $1 million to $70,000 to help make it happen. The reason: He read an article that more money for people who make less than $70,000 leads to increased happiness.
The happiness research comes from Angus Deaton and Daniel Kahneman, who won a Nobel Prize for his psychology research in the past. From the Times:
They found that what they called emotional well-being — defined as “the emotional quality of an individual’s everyday experience, the frequency and intensity of experiences of joy, stress, sadness, anger, and affection that make one’s life pleasant or unpleasant” — rises with income, but only to a point. And that point turns out to be about $75,000 a year.
The news comes as Wal-Mart announced pay hikes for its workers in February. The retail giant said it will raise the pay of 500,000 workers to $9 an hour in 2015 and to $10 an hour next year. There have been calls to make $15 per hour the minimum wage in recent months.
We Are Located In
Seattle • Tacoma • Portland • Los Angeles • Honolulu • Kona-Kailua • San Diego • Maui • Spokane • St. Louis • Phoenix • Bellingham • Boise • Oklahoma City • Tulsa…and we proudly serve customers in all 50 states.
Our Headquarters
1455 NW Leary Way
Suite 200
Seattle, WA 98107
info@gravitypayments.com
(206) 388-5900
Support
Available 24/7
support@gravitypayments.com
(866) 701-4700
Companies getting ahead of the curve before they are scapegoated in the 2016 campaign, and then FORCED to give raises.
I bet their job applications rate goes thru the roof....................
Reminds me of a company in Atlas Shrugged...............
One of my wife’s young employees graduates from college next month and starts at $80,000+ at CapGemini.
That’s all nice and good but these ain’t burger flippers.
If he TRULY wants to make me happy, just write me a check for $70K, LOL!
I betcha a LOT of the day to day stuff there is contracted out.
70k is not all that bad in Tulsa
So money CAN buy happiness, after all?
I’m not sure if this is part of their thinking, but —
With automation increasing, a lot of work can be done by a small number of people: if the people are smart and well trained. If you create a demanding corporate culture in which EVERYONE has to work hard and do the work CORRECTLY, then you can accomplish a lot with a small staff.
So, find seriously smart people, pay them well, work them hard. You could be quite profitable. And if someone isn’t delivering, just show them the door.
I believe Netflix does this — if they determine that you are doing your job adequately, they fire you. Because they demand more than that.
Where I work, there is no question that 80% of the people do little or nothing. The percentage may be 90%.
I wonder if this company outsources “non-professional” work such as Facilities Management, Credit/Collections, Billing, Payroll, etc. If they are truly paying janitors and receptionists $70,000 a year, then hats off to them. But I think that if you scratch under the surface, you will find that the actual employees are in mostly professional jobs.
Two questions...
A. What are the starting and average salaries of his employees already?
B. How much of the CEOs income comes from his salary, as opposed to stocks, bonuses etc.?
maybe he has been privy to certain discussions at the Federal Reserve. Buy gold.
Maybe they recently outsourced most of their employees.
At any rate, it don’t pass my smell test.
B indeed.
Steve Jobs’ salary as Apple CEO was $1/yr.
That is pretty insightful. This must not be the top paid CEO in the land if that is the extent of his intellect (per the article).
Next, how much are those to get raises making right now? $65K, $40K, $20K? Apparently the CEO is taking a $930,000 pay cut (on the surface). That is noble and he will likely win some loyalty and productivity in the ranks. Good for him. But I hope he has given more thought and has more reason than just the PR side of their business. What about the 20 year employee that is making $72K/year currently? Does he get a separate but equal pay raise.
There is a Dollar Store, or Dollar general..not sure which..that just opened nearby..it’s a large, free standing building..own parking lot...looks like a smaller WalMart...and just as WM wiped out the dept stores and the main street shops...if WM and others go up in price points, new merchants will come in to exploit the opportunity..
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.