Fair pay for fair work sounds simple enough in theory. It makes sense that someone who takes on riskier and more demanding tasks might get paid extra. Similarly, someone who has a less stressful job might stand to make a slightly lower wage.
Redditor u/ConsistentDetail834, a dad and construction company owner, recently went viral online after turning to the AITA online community for advice. He opened up about a “week-long argument” at home because he refused a hypothetical scenario where he would have to pay his daughter the same as his son for working less than him.
Scroll down for the full story, as well as the internet’s reactions. Bored Panda has reached out to the author for comment via Reddit, and we’ll update the article once we hear back from him.
One of the best things that any parent can do is teach their kids about the reality of work, pay, and finances
Image credits: Karolina Grabowska / pexels (not the actual photo)
A dad revealed how he had to draw some boundaries when his daughter asked for better pay for less work than her brother
Image credits: Ron Lach / pexels (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Pavel Danilyuk / pexels (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Los Muertos Crew / pexels (not the actual photo)
The author later shared a small update, clarifying a few important details
Image credits: ConsistentDetail834
Business owners need to treat all of their employees fairly, instead of providing favorable conditions only to a select few
Now, don’t get us wrong: we are huge supporters of fair and equal pay. However, an employee’s paycheck has to make sense in the context of the company, as well as the entire market. It might sound like a small issue, but it can have much larger repercussions.
If someone is not pulling as much weight as everyone else but getting a paycheck just as large as the rest of the workers, this can lead to some frustration and resentment. On top of that, some employees might start grumbling about nepotism.
The dad shared that he’s a business owner and has a small construction company. “With 15 men, I have 2 crews on large jobs or 3 on smaller jobs. There’s no bookkeeping or other positions she can do because I do those on the weekends. There’s only the construction positions,” he shared with the AITA subreddit.
The OP added that none of his children “have any interest in taking over” the company after he retires. In this context, every dollar has to count. When we’re talking about smaller businesses, unless profit has been absolutely massive, there’s usually very little leeway when it comes to piling on additional costs.
Raises and bonuses have to be based on merit. Moreover, if someone is getting paid more money than they’re bringing in with their efforts, the entire business—and, by extension, all the other workers—ends up getting the short end of the stick.
Image credits: Tiger Lily / pexels (not the actual photo)
Every single dollar counts, especially when it comes to managing the finances of smaller companies
Case in point, it would be completely fair to bring the redditor’s daughter on as an employee if the conditions were right. Namely, that the crew needed an additional worker and the daughter herself would do as much work as her hypothetical colleagues.
Similarly, it would be unfair to demand the same paycheck as the OP’s son while doing less work than he does. From our perspective, that’s what is at the core of u/ConsistentDetail834’s story: he’s using this situation to teach his children a lesson about the importance of fairness.
The vast majority of readers were on the dad’s side and thought that he did nothing wrong. However, this doesn’t diminish the fact that the entire situation caused a ton of tension back home. Even when you know you’re objectively right, it hurts when your loved ones are mad at you.
Investopedia notes that entrepreneurs ought to properly investigate the market and come up with solid (not to mention realistic!) business plans. “The more mistakes you make, the more expensive your business will become, and the greater the chance of failure.”
Another major issue that business owners run into has to do with having too little capital. To put it bluntly, if you don’t have enough money to last you through some tougher months, your business might not survive until it's finally raking in a lot of profit. Again—every dollar counts.
Good entrepreneurs also dedicate some of their resources to marketing and keeping a solid presence on the internet. Naturally, a good reputation can do wonders for the business, even through word of mouth. However, in this day and age, it’s useful to use all the tools at your disposal.
Whose side are you on, dear Pandas? Would you have done anything differently if you were in the dad’s shoes? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.
Image credits: RF._.studio / pexels (not the actual photo)
The dad's story went viral and a lot of people wanted to share their thoughts about the situation
