Working in a lower ranking for a large company can make you feel like a small fish in a very big pond.

When you take on a job role in this sort of environment, you’re supposed to be happy with the things outlined in the interview room: your salary, your working hours, and the jobs expected of you.

But this can quickly cause issues once you’ve been hired, as life changes and you begin to realize you can’t afford to live on your current salary.

For most people, asking for a pay rise becomes the only solution – either that, or taking on another job.

A recent study by Payscale of 30,000 employees who asked for a pay rise doesn’t show promising results. Only 44 percent of employees got the amount they wanted, and 25 percent didn’t get a raise at all.

It can be frustrating to feel like your voice isn’t being heard by your employers, especially if you’ve been working exceptionally hard and believe you deserve a pay rise.

It can lead to self-doubt and lots of questions: can your employers really not afford to pay you? How much do they earn in comparison? And what’s the point in working hard if you won’t even get recognized for it?

One CEO who has stepped out of the box and shown just how much he values his employees is Dan Price.

https://www.instagram.com/p/COx5lz7NpW4/

Dan is the Co-Founder of Gravity Payments, a financial services and credit card processing company.

Originally, Dan’s employees had a starting salary of around $30,000. 6 years ago, after a particularly memorable exchange with a staff member, Dan hit headlines when he increased his employees’ minimum salaries to $70,000 – and reduced his own $1.1 million salary by 90% in the process.

Ever since Dan’s decision went viral, the debate on how much workers should be paid has been raging.

Recently, Dan shared a Twitter post that explained exactly what led him to make such a bold, unheard-of move.

How I learned to be a better boss:

I was a bad CEO. 7 years ago, I found a McDonald’s training handbook on the desk of an employee named Rosita. Turns out she was training to become a manager there because she couldn’t survive on the income I paid here. I called her to my office

— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) July 29, 2021

He explained that one of his employees was hiding a McDonald’s handbook on her desk, and learned that she was training to become a manager there because she couldn’t afford to live on Dan’s salary alone.

When Dan called her to her office, he found out more about his staff member’s lifestyle.

She was hiding the McD’s handbook and thought her 2nd job would get her fired. What kind of culture had I created? Scarcity and fear.

Rosita is a college grad but was making $30k a year.

She’d leave our job at 5 and secretly work 5:30-11 every weeknight at McD’s for 1.5 years.

— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) July 29, 2021

She was currently juggling two jobs a day, working grueling hours to be able to afford to survive. She felt that her second job was essential, as on her current salary, she often had to queue at the food bank just to eat.

Dan admitted that as a CEO, he was out of touch with the challenges of paying off a student loan on a $30k salary.

After some back-and-forthing, Dan negotiated a $10k pay rise for his staff member.

She came back and said she needed a $10k raise to quit the 2nd job. I said OK if she took on some extra duties.

She quit the McD’s job, moved out of her crappy apartment and used the free time to see her friends more. As her mental health improved, so did her work performance.

— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) July 29, 2021

He saw the value in his decision, and decided to increase the salaries of all his staff. The rewards have been more than worth it: Dan says the business’ revenue and productivity has tripled.

If only more CEOs would take a leaf out of Dan’s book – just imagine how much happier and more productive people in corporate careers would feel in everyday working life.

Rosita is now our director of sales and was interviewed about her experiences by star author @AdamMGrant https://t.co/wAnaz6H0iy

Here we are together on the Kelly Clarkson show where she shared her story: pic.twitter.com/0Xl0vNk2F0

— Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) July 29, 2021

You can watch the moment that Dan announces an immediate-effect pay rise to his staff in the video below.

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Source: DMailTEam/ YouTube, The Atlantic, Bored Panda, Twitter