pay

Payment

The reception of compensation for a good or service. For example, if one sells a hairdryer for $10, the payment is $10. In a cash sale, payment is made immediately or almost immediately, while in a credit sale, payment may be delayed for a certain period of time.

pay

the money paid to an employee for performing specified work tasks or JOBS. Payment to employees for the labour they provide takes two main forms:

1. PAYMENT BY TIME, principally weekly WAGES and OVERTIME, together with monthly SALARIES;
2. PAYMENT BY RESULTS, principally PIECEWORK, INCENTIVE BONUSES, GROUP INCENTIVE BONUSES.

The main distinction between the two is that ‘payment by time’ systems remunerate workers for the amount of labour supplied (i.e. the input of labour) per time period (hourly, weekly etc.) irrespective of the amount of output produced; whereas ‘payment by results’ systems remunerate workers specifically for the amount or value of the output produced in a given time period. ‘Payment by results’ is favoured by many firms because it is thought to provide a strong financial incentive for workers to strive to maximize their output rather than work at a more leisurely pace, but the firm may be required to install appropriate INSPECTION systems to ensure that extra output has not been achieved at the expense of product quality and reliability.

Pay rates are determined by a number of factors including the forces of supply and demand for particular types of job in the LABOUR MARKET, the bargaining power of TRADE UNIONS (see COLLECTIVE BARGAINING) and the general economic climate (see, for example, PRICES AND INCOMES POLICY). In addition to receipt of money employees may receive various other work-related benefits such as free or subsidized meals, travel allowances, a company car, etc. (see FRINGE BENEFITS). See ATTENDANCE BONUS, MERIT PAY, COMMISSION, FEE, PERFORMANCE-RELATED PAY, CAFETERIA BENEFITS, COMPARABILITY, INCREMENTAL PAY SCALE, WORK MEASUREMENT, PROFIT-RELATED PAY, EMPLOYEE SHARE OWNERSHIP PLAN, PAY DIFFERENTIALS, LOW PAY, GAINSHARING, EXECUTIVE SHARE OPTION SCHEME, LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PLAN, SHARE INCENTIVE PLAN, MINIMUM WAGE RATE, FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION.

pay

the money paid to an employee for performing specified work tasks or jobs. Payment to employees for the labour they provide takes two main forms:

1. payment by time, principally weekly WAGES and OVERTIME, together with monthly SALARIES.
2. payment by results, principally PIECEWORK payments, bonuses (see BONUS SCHEME), PROFIT-RELATED PAY and COMMISSIONS.

The main distinction between the two is that ‘payment by time’ systems remunerate workers for the amount of labour supplied (i.e. the input of labour) per time period (hourly, weekly, etc.), irrespective of the amount of output produced, whereas ‘payment by results’ systems remunerate workers specifically for the amount or value of the output produced in a given time period. ‘Payment by results’ is favoured by many firms because it is thought to provide a strong financial incentive for workers to strive to maximize their output rather than work at a more leisurely pace, but the firm may be required to install appropriate inspection systems to ensure that extra output has not been achieved at the expense of product quality and reliability.

Pay rates are determined by a number of factors, including the forces of supply and demand for particular types of job in the LABOUR MARKET (see WAGE RATE), the bargaining power of TRADE UNIONS (see COLLECTIVE BARGAINING) and the general economic climate (see, for example, PRICES AND INCOMES POLICY).

In addition to receipt of money, employees may receive various other work-related benefits such as free or subsidized meals, travel allowances, a company car, etc. See FRINGE BENEFITS, DEFERRED COMPENSATION. See EMPLOYEE SHARE OWNERSHIP, PROFIT SHARING.