The Pitfalls of Pay Parity: Why Making Things Fair is Not as Simple as Paying Everyone the Same Thing

Pay parity is one of those things that sound really, really amazing and attractive. It feels like so many challenges female physicians face could be solved if everyone just earned the same, right?

Well, oftentimes pay parity can create its own set of imbalances that breed discontent, frustration, and being underpaid for your expertise. If mis-aligned or incorrectly implemented, pay parity can become another way people aren’t paid what they’re worth.

Can pay parity be a good thing? How do we approach negotiations in an organization that pays on parity? How do we avoid contracts we’ll end up resenting and regretting?

In today’s episode, I’m going to talk about a topic that really needs attention - pay parity and how to navigate it.

Three Things You’ll Learn In This Episode 

• Pay parity vs. pay equity
  What’s the difference between parity and equity and is it possible to have equity and parity at once?
  
  
• The concerns a pay parity contract has to address
  Can pay parity truly address the nuances of our individual work and also account for the barriers we have to practice?
  
  
• How group parity can lead to individual discontent
  There’s power in numbers, but there can also be unfairness when we’re lumped in with many people. How do we ensure that the group pay parity status benefits us individually?