Why US Compagnies Go Overseas: Outrageous Offshore Low Pay
Why Do I fool myself, when I know you are paying more somebody else, only the Fool and the Answer my Friend is blowing in the Wind by a the whistleblower at Twitter
“The whistleblowers have done us a service in revealing what the disparities already are,” says Stern, who admits that there has long been an understanding that some salaries in certain jurisdictions may be higher than others. “But the idea that two human beings in different countries doing similar work should be paid differently just offends the basic understanding of work and human dignity.
witter execs may be focused on a looming legal battle with putative buyer Elon Musk, but employees are talking about drastic pay disparities at the company globally. A new internal dashboard shows differences for the same role of up to 225%, depending on location, Input reported, citing information it viewed. A data specialist in Ghana, for example, might have a salary of $15,600, while one in the U.K. earns $51,000. The company has told employees the differences are based on local pay averages instead of cost of living, according to Input.
- Employees who have raised the issue with managers say they have been ignored, and some intend to leave, Input reports, citing anonymous staff.
Exclusive: Leaked salary data show huge pay disparities at Twitter
The data — which is labeled “Twitter confidential. For internal use only. Do not distribute” — is current as of April 2022.
Examples of large pay differences include legal counsel directors (a Level 8 position) earning a maximum of $338,000 in New York, compared to $203,000 for the same role in the U.K.; curation leads (a Level 6 role) earning a maximum of $226,000 in San Francisco, compared to A$216,000 ($149,000) in Australia and 1,330,000 pesos ($65,000) in Mexico; and data specialists (Level 3) earning a maximum of $51,000 in the U.K., compared to 128,000GHS ($15,600) in Ghana.
“The company released the salary dashboard with the caveat that they were doing so for transparency, but with no intention to change the huge pay discrepancy,” says a second Twitter employee, who is also based outside the U.S. According to them, the company said that the difference was not based on cost of living in each country, but rather how much the average salary was in each area.
The inaction was partly because of a desire to preserve the status quo, in the opinion of the second employee, which would benefit U.S.-based executives. “Senior management in the U.S. doubled down on the fact there was nothing they could do to correct the discrepancy, which was to be expected given that they benefit the most from it,” they say.
UPDATE 7/19/22: After this story went to press by inputmag.com, a Twitter spokesperson issued this statement: “Twitter regularly evaluates compensation in each market where our employees are based to ensure we pay equitably and remain market competitive. Each role’s compensation is localized depending on location, and our approach ensures we are competitive against local market practices.”
The Reason why Companies Look for Locations Close to a Country where the Wages are Lower
Tesla takes a Mexican fast lane
Updated 3 hours ago
Tesla has won a dedicated express lane to and from Nuevo Leon, Mexico, to help speed deliveries from suppliers there. After relocating its headquarters to Austin, Texas, from Silicon Valley, the EV maker struck a deal with the Mexican state to open the lane at the obscure Colombia Solidarity checkpoint, reports Bloomberg. Details of the agreement were unavailable, but half a dozen suppliers to Tesla, including Taiwanese companies Enflex and Quanta, have sprung up on the Mexican side of the crossing since last year.
