Set the right pay rates

If you currently – or intend to – employ people, you will want to set rates of pay that will encourage potential applicants to apply and keep existing workers happy and motivated. You must also make sure your pay arrangements are not discriminatory.

Setting suitable rates of pay and deciding on pay systems are major decisions that will have a long-lasting impact on your business.

This guide covers what to consider when setting pay rates, including ensuring equal pay for women and men, avoiding potentially discriminatory pay practices, paying at least the national minimum wage, and using pay to recruit, motivate and retain workers. It also describes the different types of pay-rate systems and schemes.

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Pay-rate systems

When you select a pay-rate system, you are choosing how you will reward your workers.

Types of pay-rate systems

There are two main types of pay-rate system:

• Basic-rate systems pay workers a fixed amount on an hourly, weekly or monthly basis. These are simple to operate but do not offer many incentives to workers.
• Variable or incentive schemes are where all or part of a worker’s pay is based on performance, skills, results and/or profits. They could be more expensive if your workers are highly motivated and successful but can also help increase profits.

Incentive schemes can be based on individual performance, group performance or a combination of both:

• An individual incentive scheme can help to motivate your workers. However, they may become demotivated if they find that their pay isn’t as high as they expected it to be.
• A group incentive scheme can encourage team working and a sense of contribution. However, they could also result in unequal performances and in extra payments being seen as the norm.

Pay can also be linked to other factors, such as qualifications, which may increase flexibility and promote multi-tasking. However this may also make workers more marketable.

You can download detailed guidance on pay-rate systems [opens in a new window].

Choosing a system

You will need to find the right system or combination of systems to suit your business. Always weigh up the pros and cons of each.

Remember that factors other than cash pay can motivate workers, eg benefits, feedback, supervision, training, consultation and work-life balance, which sometimes lead to better retention rates.

Whichever system you choose, you should try to make it as transparent as possible. This is so that everyone knows:

• how their pay is calculated
• how they might get a bonus or any other type of pay enhancement

The Acas Model Workplace

The Acas Model Workplace tool can help you assess the effectiveness of your pay and reward practices and give you guidance on setting up and maintaining good employment relations. You can find out about the Acas Model Workplace on the Acas website- Opens in a new window.

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Setting up a new pay-rate system

It will almost certainly cost you time and money to set up a new – or even change an existing – pay-rate system.

Getting started

You may find it helpful to view a pay-rate system checklist on the Acas website- Opens in a new window. The checklist includes advice on how to:

• plan the process for selecting or adapting a system
• involve workers, both full-time and part-time
• get expert advice if needed
• agree changes with workers’ representatives, if any
• evaluate the good and bad points of your existing system, if you have one
• decide what the objectives of the system need to be, eg increased productivity
• consider the most suitable pay differentials and links for your business
• think about how workers might be able to earn increases to their basic pay, eg through annual increases, bonuses, or other payments based on performance assessment
• communicate progress regularly to all workers
• look out for potential pitfalls, such as changes to pay differentials and scope for discrimination
• make sure the system is properly maintained
• review the system’s performance
• ensure women returning from maternity leave get any pay rises occurring in their absence

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Making pay comparisons

To make sure you are getting your pay rates right, consider checking whether or not your rates are competitive with other comparable businesses in your industry and region.

Benchmarking pay

Comparisons can be made with other businesses by region, industry or other factors, such as business size through benchmarking.

A number of organisations provide benchmarking information on rates of pay and payment systems. Read a factsheet on basic UK pay data and settlements on the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) website- Opens in a new window.

Regional differences in pay

Almost every worker is entitled to be paid at least the national minimum wage (NMW). The NMW rates vary according to age but not location, ie they are the same regardless of where you are in the UK.

See our section on the national minimum wage.

However, for jobs and industries that pay higher than the NMW, there are often regional differences in pay rates. Often these can occur because of, for example:

• local problems in hiring and keeping workers
• higher living costs, eg in Greater London compared with elsewhere in the UK

There is a ‘London living wage’. However, paying workers in the capital this rate is entirely voluntary. Find information on the London living wage on the Mayor of London website- Opens in a new window.

Differences in pay across industries

Different factors also influence pay in different industry sectors. Examples include the need for specialist skills or experience, whether the right workers are available, the demand for the products or services, job location and the nature of the work.

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Equal pay for work of equal value

The law says that men and women are entitled to equal pay for work of equal value. Pay in this context includes contractual benefits, eg bonuses and pension contributions, as well as basic wages or salary.

Under the Equality Act 2010, workers have the right to ask their employer for information to help them work out whether they have received equal pay, and if not, why. They can do this by filling in a special questions form. You are not obliged to respond but, if you wish to, you can use the special answers form.

Find the Equality Act questions and answers forms on the Government Equalities Office website- Opens in a new window.

Equal pay claims at employment tribunals

Workers who believe they haven’t received equal pay may take the case to an employment tribunal, which may use the information in the questionnaire.

For their tribunal claim to be successful, a worker will need to compare their pay to that of someone of the opposite sex (a ‘comparator’).

There are laws in place to deal with large and complex equal value cases. The laws aim to streamline the system and reduce delays. There are also restrictions on when an employment tribunal may choose not to consider an equal value claim. 

Ensuring equal pay

To ensure that you are paying your workers fairly, you could undertake a job evaluation. This compares the skills and competencies that each type of job requires. With this information, you can determine which jobs are of equal value.

The evaluation must analyse a job by preset factors that apply to all the jobs under evaluation rather than looking at each job in isolation. Avoid basic errors such as assuming jobs that are being done part-time are of lesser value.

With regular reviews of your pay system, you can build and maintain a robust, fair pay system that stands up to scrutiny and is less susceptible to claims for equal pay.

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Reviewing pay rates and systems

You should review your pay systems on an ongoing basis. It is also important to check, at least annually, that your pay rates are competitive.

The benefits of pay reviews

If you regularly review your pay systems, you can check whether or not you are achieving objectives such as cost control, team working and increased productivity.

Other benefits of regular reviews are that you can:

• address the effect of factors such as regional changes, industry developments or skills shortages
• incorporate the impact of new machinery or technology on your business, such as new skills requirements and new roles
• review hiring and training policies – see our guide on advertising a job and interviewing candidates
• prepare for changes required by legislation such as revisions to national minimum wage rates
• review feedback from your workers on whether your pay rates and systems are fair and act as incentives
• incorporate changes in employment contracts
• act on decisions from collective bargaining – see our guide on how to work effectively with trade unions
• ensure you keep in contact with people on a break, eg maternity or adoption leave
• find and close any loopholes that might otherwise have led to claims of pay discrimination on the grounds of eg gender, race, status as a part-time worker

Harmonisation

You may wish to consider reducing differences in pay structure between categories of employees.

This process – called harmonisation – can often be beneficial and be utilised throughout your business.

You can find out more about harmonisation in our guide: change an employee’s terms of employment.

Consulting your workforce when reviewing pay

You may consider involving workers’ representatives in your pay reviews. This encourages feedback and helps you to hear of any problems they are facing.

Alternatively you could set up a pay review committee, which may or may not include workers’ representatives, that meets regularly to consider pay-related issues.

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Commission, bonuses, tips and gratuities

When you choose a pay system for your business that pays – or partly pays – by results, you will need to consider what form those payments will take.

Commission is a payment based on the individual worker’s or team’s performance. It is common among sales workers to provide an incentive to sell. Because they earn commission, they often have lower basic salaries than other workers.

Some workers are paid by commission only. If you choose purely commission-based pay, you must ensure that a worker is always paid at least the national minimum wage.

Bonuses are generally linked to performance. They can be based on one or more performance measures such as financial results of a business, team and/or individual.

Tips and gratuities are commonly paid to workers in the hotel and catering trade.

These payments can be distributed to workers in a number of ways:

• directly from customers
• as a share of a pooling arrangement
• as a share of service charges paid by customers to the employer

Most money payments that are similar to salaries or wages must have income tax and National Insurance contributions deducted. See our guide on pay – an overview of obligations.

If you choose any of these methods of payment, you should also make sure that the system boosts performance and effective teamwork and does not lead to harmful rivalry between workers.

The Acas Model Workplace

The Acas Model Workplace tool can help you assess the effectiveness of your pay and reward practices and give you guidance on setting up and maintaining good employment relations. You can find out about the Acas Model Workplace on the Acas website- Opens in a new window.

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