I found my boss would pay me more if I was a woman

Each week, Dr Kirstin Ferguson answers questions about the workplace, career and leadership in his suggestion column “Got Minutes?” This week, a question about the gender pay gap, the difficulties of refereeing an employee, and figuring out what to do after false accusations.

I am male and have since learned from a colleague that the person who hired me for my new role was instructed when he recruited that he could offer a higher salary to qualified female applicants. This is because the organization wants more women in management roles and wants to “close the gender pay gap” within the organization. I felt discriminated against and as a result I suffered financially. Do they have the right to pay me less because of my gender?

If you hear office gossip saying you could get paid more, it’s time to get the facts straight.Credit:Dionne Gain

Your employer should be credited for wanting to ensure there is a gender balance in your workplace, but also for understanding the backlash from situations – as you describe – could make their initiative counter-productive. For you and the women (and potential women) in your business, it is important that there is clarity about the efforts and work being done to ensure equality across all areas. There’s a good report on this exact issue surrounding the backlash issue prepared by Chief Executive Women in 2018, which is well worth a read.

In your situation, before feeling like you’ve been discriminated against, I’d suggest seeing if you can get the facts first. It looks like you were told by someone, who was told by someone else, that there is more money available to female applicants. It is quite problematic that someone leaks this confidential information but, to answer your question, of course no employer deserves to pay less because of their gender. However, it’s clear that in your new workplace, there is a gender pay gap and women have been paid less than their male counterparts for some time. It’s not an ideal situation for anyone to have this issue handled in this way, so I suggest you go to HR and ask to understand your own circumstances more clearly.

How do you tell an employee, if you are their direct line manager, that you may not be the best person to referee them? Sometimes I feel uncomfortable with the new position the person is applying for and know that a poor job skill match can be detrimental to the person’s mental health. I also wonder if refereeing underperforming players to get them out of work maybe a thing?

I’ve been asked about references and sometimes there’s confusion about what kind of references to look for. I will be referring to references given orally to recruiters or former employers, not written references outlining dates of employment and roles that may have been held (for the record, they should always be provided).

In terms of more subjective verbal references, the bottom line is if you don’t think you are the best person to referee someone, for whatever reason, let them know. This is especially true if you have to manage the person’s performance at all.

Emphasize to the person that any references you provide will always be completely honest, and that way the person can make their own choices about whether or not listing you as a referee would be a good thing for them.

You should never use referrals as a way to transfer underperforming employees to someone else. If providing references means you have to be dishonest and keep quiet on really important details about their work with you, don’t do it. I think it’s a step too far to refuse to be a referee just because you’re making a judgment that the future role won’t be good for that person’s mental health. You don’t know that a new organization, a new culture, or even a new boss might be what they need.

#boss #pay #woman