We recently undertook a survey of the prevalent job evaluation and pay structuring practices in Zimbabwe. The aim of this research was to document job evaluation and pay structuring practices in Zimbabwe, and draw lessons from these practices that can help companies improve the administration process and sustainability of their remuneration policies.
A total of 82 Zimbabwean organisations employing a total of 54 964 employees participated in the survey. The smallest participating organisation employed 12 people and the largest employed 16 000 people. In this article, I will highlight some of the key findings of this study. Next week I will then highlight the potential challenges we identified through this survey and how organisations may deal with these issues.
93,7 percent of participating organisation use a job evaluation system as the basis of determining pay. 6,33 percent of the participating organisations do not use any job evaluation system. The most widely used job evaluation system for grading managerial jobs is the Paterson system (46,84 percent) followed by the Castellion system (13,92 percent). Other systems currently being used in Zimbabwe include the Hay system (8,86 percent), in-house systems (15,19 percent) and Peromnes (3,80 percent).
The most popular system for grading non-managerial positions is the Paterson (31,3 percent) together with National Employment Council specific grading systems (31,3 percent). Only 29,11 percent of the participating organisations feel their job evaluation system is very effective. 57 percent feel it’s somehow effective with 13,92 percent saying it’s not effective. Over 70 percent of the organisations have some grading related queries. Only 17,50 percent of the participating organisations indicated that they do not have grading queries at all.
Only 37 percent of the participating organisations have a formal pay structure. 43 percent have a pay structure but the structure is not in line with best practices. 19,8 percent have no formal pay structure at all. The average range for a salary structure reported is 24 percent and the maximum reported range is 62 percent. (Please note however: some of the figures reported show that most human resources (HR) professionals do not understand what a salary range is.) The average pay structure progression reported is 26 percent.
53,2 percent of the participants have a separate pay structure for managerial employees and another for non-managerial employees. 46,8 percent of the participants have one pay structure for both managerial and non-managerial employees.
Regardless of the calls to increase transparency around remuneration in organisations, pay structures remain secret documents that are sometimes concealed from even HR executives. In our survey, 46,26 percent of the participants reported that only senior managers have access to the full pay structure while 45,45 percent indicated only the chief executive officer and HR manager have full access to the pay structure.
65 percent of the HR professionals, however said they have access to the full payroll (both executive and other employees). When asked if managers have any say in what their subordinates earn; 67 percent said to some extent, while 33 percent indicated that managers have no say. When moving individual salaries within a particular grade 7,79 percent use notches, 67,53 percent move the salary by an approved percentage as long as it falls within the grade range. 24,68 percent use a merit matrix for any salary movement within a grade.
When dealing with employees who have reached the maximum pay of their grade the practice is as follows: 45,9 percent give them a higher salary but they remain in their grade, 20,3 percent say they promote them to a higher grade, 18,9 percent offer them a retention allowance outside the pay structure in order not to distort the pay structure, 14,9 percent promote them to a higher grade with the same salary.
When promoting an employee to a higher grade the practice is as follows: 64,94 percent move the salary of the employee to the minimum of the new grade while 35,06 percent adjust the salary by a predetermined percentage. As regards the target remuneration market, most organisations (37,5 percent) target the upper quartile of the market as their comparator group. 25 percent target the median/50th percentile of the market while 26,3 percent have no target market position.
When assessing market information 49,4 percent look at organisations of similar size in the same industry in terms of revenue, 30 percent compare with organisations in the sector regardless of products being produced, 67,9 percent compare with the general labour market, and 72,8 percent compare with organisations producing similar products in the same industry.
Only 26 percent of the responding HR professionals have knowledge of pay structuring up to advanced level. Only 49 percent of the responding HR professionals have knowledge of job evaluation up to advanced level. Only 46 percent of the responding HR professionals have knowledge of salary budgeting up to advanced level.
To receive the full Job Evaluation and Pay Practices Report, contact me on the details below.
Memory Nguwi is the Managing Consultant of Industrial Psychology Consultants (Pvt) Ltd a management and human resources consulting firm. Phone 481946-48/481950/2900276/2900966 or cell number 077 2356 361 or e-mail: mnguwi@ipcconsultants.comor visit our website at www.ipcconsultants.com