Pay is understandably a sensitive topic in the current economic climate and, according to Optician’s 2023 annual salary survey, there is variation in salaries.
Of the 1,255 responses received, 40.4% earned between £20k and £40k, but notably, 4.3% earned between £10k and £15k and another 7.4% earned less than £10k.
A matter of equal pay
As to how pay should be set, from a legal perspective, Lucy Gordon, a director at Walker Morris, says: ‘There is no such thing as “fair” pay, only equal pay.’ This means outside of negotiated pay agreements with a trade union, or national pay awards, pay is determined by the employer.
She says: ‘It is up to an employer to decide what factors to take into account, whether this is inflation, Retail Prices Index, or what their competitors are paying.
But once a baseline pay structure is in place, the employer simply has to ensure that the rate is equal to or above the national minimum wage, and that the structure does not discriminate.’
This means that part-time employees receive pro-rata pay and that females are paid the same as males for performing the same work, or work that is of equal value.
Equal pay law is complex, but work can either be rated as equal through a job evaluation scheme or determined as being of equal value by an employment tribunal.
In assessing this, Gordon says tribunals consider the female’s work in comparison to that of a particular male in the business, looking at the demands made of them in terms of effort, skill and decision-making.
‘This is notoriously hard for employers to decipher, and,’ she says, ‘the first step should of course be to ensure that all employees performing the same roles are paid equally, before moving to comparable roles.’
This leaves a huge amount of discretion to employers, but it is not unusual and if practices are competing for talent, pay is the inevitable way to stand out.
It should be said that the web has made the issue of pay far more transparent; Glassdoor, for example, features comments from several employees about their experience of pay rises at Optical Express.
Recruitment business Indeed has data on pay and noted that the average optical assistant at Mackey Opticians makes £20,061.
Innovative offerings
The pandemic has forced many to reassess priorities in terms of work/life balance, families and location. Online is often able to offer much more in terms of flexibility and pay structures than traditional practices, and this is often coupled with more competitive offerings in terms of benefits, such as more generous parental leave policies.
Regardless, for Gordon: ‘Pay should ideally be more transparent than a one-on-one conversation as to how much employees have contributed over the past 12 months.
Pay awards that take into account the volume of hours worked can feel unfair to employees who are restricted on hours due to caring commitments.’
In those circumstances, she thinks it better to link pay rises to appraisal scores, so ‘those meeting their employer’s expectations all get a consistent raise, with exceptional performance being rewarded with a one-off bonus or other annual scheme.’
Gordon adds that the difficulty with rewarding performance through basic pay is that it becomes perpetual. One annual increase then creates a bigger percentage raise the following year if pay rises are otherwise across the board.
‘A few bumper years for an employee can suddenly see them in a whole new pay bracket to their peers, which can build resentment and lead to employees looking elsewhere.’
Pay reviews
While many contracts of employment provide for an annual pay review (with no commitment to an increase) there have been calls for pay to be reviewed more frequently in light of the current cost of living crisis.
Some employers have responded to the crisis by issuing one-off cost of living payments, bonuses or re-evaluating the benefits packages to seek more value for employees.
Shopping vouchers, online cashback schemes and corporate discounts have all been popular to try to make wages go further, without hitting an employer’s bottom line. A series of different pay structures may also be relevant within a business.
But for junior and administrative staff, as Gordon detailed earlier: ‘The main issue is to ensure that employees receive the National Minimum Wage (NMW) on average for the hours they work.’
Indeed picks up on this, and, in particular, the position of pre-registration optometrists undergoing a year of training. It commented that ‘in private practices, there is no set salary for this but [individuals] earn at least the NMW or National Living Wage if aged over 25.’
Regardless, Gordon comments: ‘NMW law can be complex, especially where pay is variable, and if employers are in any doubt as to whether they are meeting the requirements then they should seek legal advice for reassurance.
A failure to pay the NMW can result in claims for back pay, plus penalties of up to 200% of the underpayment, and being included on HMRC’s “named and shamed” list.’
Opticians have been caught out. In 2010, BG Optical was fined more than £3k for failing to pay four workers the NMW. In contrast, more senior staff may benefit from, or welcome, performance-related pay.
This too needs to be managed carefully to avoid indirectly discriminating against certain groups but can help businesses align commercial aims and workplace morale.
In fact, Gordon has seen schemes that reward sales or upsells, minimising costs or being efficient in consultations adopted by employers.
Ultimately, she warns that if practices fall foul of discrimination laws, employees can bring claims for their financial losses, plus awards for injury to feelings: ‘Discrimination compensation is uncapped, and therefore can present a trap for employers seeking to have variable pay structures.’
Summary
The matter of pay is a thorny one that can, inadvertently, lead employers down a path to a tribunal claim. The best advice is for employers to consider advice when in any doubt.