The City Council approved the Pay Equity Report to be
submitted to the Minnesota Office of Management and Budget. The city is required to submit a report every
three years. From the information
submitted it appears the city is in compliance with the Pay Equity Act but the
state needs to make that determination.
If they determine we are out of compliance the city is given a period of
time to comply with the law.
So you may ask, what’s Pay Equity? Minnesota is the only state to have a pay
equity law. The purpose of the law is to
provide equity in compensation between males and females. To develop an equity position an analysis is
accomplished that involves a number of steps.
Simply stated jobs are rated based on job descriptions. The ratings involve a point system that takes
into consideration things like knowledge, ability and skills. It also looks at supervision, accountability,
and responsibility for each job. Once
ratings are done, jobs and pay ranges are compared. If a female has a job rating that is the same
for a male’s job but carries a lesser pay range the situation is not equitable
and needs to be corrected. Said a
different way, a female with a job rating of 100 points should have the same
pay range as a male with a job rating of 100 points.
Historically females have been paid less than men. The goal of pay equity was to eliminate that
divide. The law does not extend pay equity to private industry, only
governmental employees. If a
jurisdiction is out of compliance it generally means there is an inequity in
female pay for a job. The law doesn’t
care if there are male inequities. The
system has many variables so managing a pay plan is important in treating all
employees fairly. Having a periodic
review of pay equity helps keep compliance in check. Managing fairness in pay with gender
neutrality is what it is all about.
