Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

[mwj666]

Hi all,

Can anyone help - what's the legal situation on this one please....

We have all just been 'benchmarked' - and in a goodly percentage of cases this has been used to justify no pay rises this year as we are 'overpaid' as far as the 'benchmarking exercise' goes

However - all requests to be told what our notional 'benchmark salary' should be and how it was arrived at are being refused. Our HR people are claiming that what our 'benchmark' salaries are is covered by 'Intellectual Property Rights' - ie because it's dropped out of the bottom of some benchmarking algorithm we are not allowed to know what it is or how they arrived at it. I believe the people they employed to do the benchmark may have been Towers Watson.

This sounds like a total get-out to me, surely they MUST have to tell you what your 'benchmark' salary is and how they arrived at it, especially when they are using it to say 'you're overpaid already' ? If they refuse to tell you anything then you can't even meaningfully dispute it - which of course may be exactly why they won't tell us!

Does anyone know if there's any legal precedent on this one? This doesn't seem to me to be the actions of a 'reasonable employer'

Thanks,
Martin

[teaboy2]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

For those that do not know, benchmarked salary is where a compay compares the salary they pay their employees to that of employees that work for a different company in the same or similar role within a certain industry. This is used to ensure the companies rates of pay are inline with that of the overall sector they operate in, which would ensure they are able to attract the talent needed to fullfil the roles within the company etc.

As for refusing to show you your benchmarked salary well under the data protection act section 10 they must reveal all data connected to you. Though they can not reveal data belonging to anothe person where that person is named. So really all they need to do is provide you with the salary details obtained which other companies pay their employees (naming a company is not a breach of data protection by the way) in the same role as you. And then show you how they worked out your benchmark, and by the way working out an average is not a breach of intellectual property, as nobody owns a math formula of add and divide etc.

I would send them a subject access request under the data protection act 1998 section 10 asking for the relevant data in connection to yourself and how it was worked out. Informing them to remove all names of other people and company images to avoid breaches of the data protection act 1998 and that of intellectual property rights, which they would be expected to do in order to comply with your section 10 request under the data protection act 1998.

[labman]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

At long last we get an employment question I could answer, and you beat me to it!

[teaboy2]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

Lol sorry Labman hehehe

[mwj666]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

Thanks Teaboy2 (and Labman lol) - I'll give it a go and see what happens.... As far as I can find out there's a lot of people who are in the same boat so they may not be happy if I force them to set a precedent - 'tough' springs to mind ;-)

Martin

[basa48]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

I would have thought how an employer determines an employees salary is entirely their own business and further if that employer wishes to employ a consultant to determine if the salaries they are paying are competitive is also entirely its own business.

The employees are free after all to take or leave the jobs if they feel the salary is not enough.

At least the employer in this case has admitted it is making salary comparisons and is adjusting some as a result. Most would just say they can't afford rises this year.

[mwj666]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

Nice to receive such a helpful reply - reminds me of our Board's view of the world (if you don't like it then leave). However you seem to have missed the point of the thread.

I am not disputing their right to benchmark people to their hearts' content, but the fact that they refuse to tell anyone the results of aforesaid benchmarking - hence complicating the decision of whether to 'pursue a career elsewhere'.

This 'benchmark' might have decided we are 'a bit overpaid' in which case I may stick around and see what happens next year - or alternatively they could think us 'miles overpaid', the latter implying a long-term pay freeze and hence time to move.

In any case, flatly refusing to tell people their 'rate for the job' and then threatening disciplinary action if they pursue the issue can only be classed as arrogance of the first order and unworthy of a FTSE 100 company.

[labman]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

The word 'transparency' springs to mind. I bet the same word is in many of their policies.

[charitynjw]

Re: Employer won't reveal my 'benchmark' salary

I bet the employer will use the 'commercial confidentiality' card.