How Should I Handle a Team Member's Discontent Over Pay Raises Affecting Morale?

Hi Seniors,

One of my team members is unhappy with the increment she received, especially after she checked with others and found out that some members received a higher percentage. Initially, she did express her unhappiness to me, and I explained to her where she lost points in appraisals, which was actually discussed during the appraisal. However, she still does not seem to be happy and is showing her unhappiness by not mingling well with other members, making it very obvious. This behavior is spoiling the team spirit and office culture.

Kindly suggest to me what I need to do as an HR Manager?

Many thanks,
Lakshmi

Why is HR being managed like cooperative society principles in India, and the same cooperative society principle would have applied, resulting in dissatisfaction among employees?

Let's think differently. Each job is different from another; hence, they are placed in different grades depending on their market value or importance to the company. Obviously, if performance ratings result in a percentage increase, that does not apply uniformly to all because the distribution of percentages for different grades would vary. This approach will not dissatisfy anyone because the organization must express the worth of the job to its employees. Compensation philosophies differentiate remuneration and corresponding increments based on job size and job worth. Therefore, increments will not cause dissatisfaction among employees.

Badlu

Hi Seniors,

One of my team members is unhappy with the increment she received, especially after she checked with others and found out that some members received a higher percentage. Initially, she did express her unhappiness to me, and I explained to her where she lost points in appraisals, which were actually discussed during the appraisal. However, she still does not seem to be happy and is showing her unhappiness by not mingling well with other members, making it very obvious. This is spoiling the team spirit and office culture.

Kindly suggest what I need to do as an HR Manager. Many thanks. Lakshmi

If you, as an HR Manager, are not able to solve it, then what can I do? 🤔🤔🤔

However, leave her alone for some time and explain to her about life, that money, girlfriend, success can come and go anytime.

Hi Lakshmi,

First of all, if you want to retain the team spirit and office culture and avoid such cases in the future, you should implement a Confidentiality of Salary Policy in your office and take action against those who disclose/discuss their salaries. This should also be applied during appraisals to prevent comparisons from happening.

Now that she has already discussed it with everyone and since you have already explained to her the points where she lost, you can boost her by asking her to improve her performance. There's not much that can be done now, but preventive action can be taken.

Regards,
Shweta

Dear All,

I am working as an HR Executive in an automobile dealership. I joined here six months ago. Now, I am facing a problem where some of my salespeople don't want ESI deductions. Could you please advise me if it is legally possible or not?

Regards,
Prachi

Hi Lakshmi,

I am surprised that you do not, in the first place, have a Private & Confidentiality Policy covering the single most important thing why people work for someone - salary.

Contrary to what you or others might easily brush off as simple as having a P&C policy, there are a host of other underlying issues connected to when people protest over unfair treatment in salary movement. The main principle argument that is usually invoked is the question of equity. What this means is how the value of team member contribution within a team is determined. This is one of the pressing issues for leadership when you discriminate the rewards, according to certain subjective criteria. There is no right or wrong way to go about deciding what works best in designing a good reward system, but the basis of it must take into account elements such as objectivity, fairness, quantifiable, measurable, and acceptable to the larger majority. When you have crafted this, then you need to communicate it - how the game will be played and rewarded.

Now, coming back to your case, to what extent was this person aware of the game? Was it made known that increments will be based solely on individual performance contribution? Was the person misled to think otherwise - in the context and spirit of teamwork, "One for all, All for One"? This is at the heart of all controversies when you discriminate against individuals in a team, when they carry the same workload effort in producing the desired results. Believe me, as a performance management expert, many people do not give sufficient thought to safeguard this aspect of damage on the team spirit when they discriminate rewards by individuals.

There is not enough space for me to present my case, but I would seriously advise you to take the one place that can help you turn around this potential demotivator if not disaster. Talk to the team and seek their views on how to move forward so that you do not get another member with the same issue come next year.

Remember, the P&C policy is there to tell them it's a non-disclosure subject, and they could get into trouble if reported. But, that is not going to stop if collaborators too have a secret P&C agreement to cross-share. Then you are left with the same signs of dysfunctional team behavior and low morale. The worst part is it's a catch 22, since you really can't put your finger on what is really bugging the person because revealing the reason will land the person in trouble! What then... How do you address a problem without knowing the root cause? Do you now see my point? My advice is to look towards a long-term solution in designing a well-thought-out and comprehensive performance management system - it can be KPI results or Competency/behavior-based, so long as every team player agrees to what and how rules will influence the points/ratings. If possible, incorporate a 360-degree evaluation component into it and factor the appropriate weightage so that people know how important it can influence their performance. Once done, then what is left is merely members earning what they already acknowledge and accept. This is what the spirit of a performance-based reward system is meant to be. It should be dynamic in its multiple roles and purposes, such as reflecting the spirit of meritocracy culture of excellence at work, spirit of performance, recognition of STAR Individuals, development of talent, etc. This is how companies are supposed to engage and motivate people.

I would strongly advise you to coach the person and motivate her back to her original psychological level of enthusiasm. Tell her, missing out on a few dollars does not have to alter our reason to prove she only worked for the money, not the team. Inquire how the financial loss has affected her perspective to work, colleagues, company, profession, family, etc. Empathize and help her through her low moments and demonstrate your genuine care and concern for all members of the TEAM.

I conclude with an oxymoron. We encourage and reward a behavior to reinforce more of it, right. Why do we then do the opposite when it comes to team spirit, even if it is done in P&C? Where is the spirit, strength, and allegiance to the integrity of the team?

I hope the above helps.

Regards,
Yuva
Malaysia

People who decide the increments are not fools; they have enough mechanisms to test and evaluate who should get what based on the performance shown (productivity) and demand/supply in the open market for that particular profile.

Therefore, work hard and be a winner not only in your job but also in the softer aspects of the company and society. So, at the end of the day, it's not just the appraisal policy but individual wisdom that decides the salary hike.