I worked with some friends at a shitty hunting and camping store after I got out of the military. I was 26, I had some college under my belt, I had a bunch of experience working in the field, and I got along great with customers. I repeatedly tried to demonstrate my worth and thought I was doing a good job at it. We had several hiring waves where all the new hires would walk out, and on more than one occassion I found out that the new hires (high school kids most of the times) got hired in at $18 an hour, meanwhile I was getting paid $10.50 an hour. I finally got irritated one day and decided to bring up my pay with my manager saying how is it fair you hire kids in at 18 but im making almost 10 bucks less. Most these kids live at home, while im struggling to figure out how much gas costs to get to work? They told me that even though they announced how much they made as they quit, that im still technically discussing pay so they will do me a favor and not fire me for breaking company policy, so long as I never bring up my wages again. Later on I had a group project for my college class I asked three weeks in advance on to have the day off for, they told me that day was first day of Archery Season and my manager had already called dibs on that day (without putting in any paperwork) so I was gonna have to skip my class project to come in. The manager said they already made travel plans and was taking the whole family out. This project was vital to me passing the class and i had to be there in person, so on that particular day, I went in to work, told them I quit and gave them a letter of resignation, and then I drove to my campus. One of my friends told me a little while after the manager dropped their family off and then drove all the way back to the store to cover all my shifts since I quit so abruptly. I fuckin hate retail.

“Evil takes effort, and most people are lazy”. Spoken like a true blue collar guy. I love it.

The flip side is that I worked for a company for over 20 years and got to the point I could pretty much step into any position and take over their job. Yet my employer routinely brought in high school graduates that didn’t know shit, put them above me and paid them more than I was making. These entitled little shits were usually some kind of manager’s kids or their friends and I ended up doing their job and mine. finally one day, I had enough and do I waited until a Big Crunch came in and I walked in, took a look around and said” I’m done” and started cleaning out my locker. The big boss came in and started screaming at me that I couldn’t quit without 2 weeks notice. “ just watch me” I said “ at will employee”. I then walked to my car and never looked back. I don’t know what happened to them but I am fine and wished I had done it 20 years earlier.

Years ago I was a non union electrician. I asked for a raise and got shot down. My Forman had me going behind another guy to fix his mistakes and the mistakes he made were things that even a first year apprentice would know better than to do. When I found out this guy was making $8 per hour more than me, I was pretty pissed and I started looking for another job and when I quit, I told hr how I felt.

I work for a guy that pays me more than he pays himself. I'm the highest paid person that works there and some days i feel over paid. It makes me feel appreciated and drives me to make sure i earn my paycheck.

Story time : my wife had a job that she held for 3 long years. She was very good at her job. She was so good that they went through 4 managers (her superior) and each new one was trained by her. So she went to the head supervisor and said "hey Joe. I'm so good at what I do that I train the people above me. How about a promotion?". Well joe told her that he would love to promote her but she was too good at her position and whoever filled it would have big shoes to fill. Now let me just tell you that she had gotten 3 quarter raises. So once a year they would pay her 25 cents more. She was making 17 during covid and they bumped her up to 17.25 for her loyalty. Managers started at 22. But she had faith and against my encouragement she stayed. Well they started having staff shortages and they started doing job fairs. New employees below her position started at 18. So she went back to joe and said "hey Joe. I see the new hires getting paid more then me. It seems unfair and I would like a pay adjustment.". Joe looked at her and told her. "We're sorry but raises aren't in the budget this year. Rest assured that I'll keep you in mind.". Something finally clicked in her head. She finished her week and when she went to pick up her check she told joe that he no longer had to worry about her. She found a new job being a manager starting out at 25. Joe begged her to stay. Promised her the world. When she demanded all his promises in writing he told her good bye it was nice working with you. Moral of story. Know your worth. The time and loyalty that you dedicate to most companies is meaningless. Strive for more and never stop.

I had no problem discussing my pay, I was talking to one person, and they found out I was making 2$ more than them. They proceeded to take it out on me, like I controlled their pay.

I am both happy for them and pissed at management. I was at a job and worked my tail off, never late, never missed, went above. New hires after me started out making $3 more on the hour than me. I went to ask for a raise to make at least what the new hires made and was told that raises weren't an option. Management was an ass to begin with and had no problems holding meetings and singling out one person to embarrass front of everyone. I had already been through that many times at this point. No matter how hard you worked, it was never enough. So since pay increases weren't an option, neither was my staying. I said good bye and the stress and anxiety I felt everyday, left. Best decision I could have made.

That sir, was an absolute masterclass on how to work with employees.

I'm a journeyman welder, discussing ur pay is part of the hustle...if u don't discuss ur pay, the welder helper is prob making more than the welder!GREAT TOPIC DUDE🤘

I'm about to become an employer, and I appreciate these brilliant insights into your philosophy on how to be a decent human being and a good employer.

If there were more bosses like you, life would be so much better.

I worked for a warehouse grocery company for 5 years and became an assistant manager after two. At Four years a second assistant was hired that 20+ years of experience and is an amazing manager. We got along well and I helped him navigate the different systems that we had. One afternoon after some serious difficulties with our systems I was able to get the problem resolved. After doing so he remarked that I should be paid more... I gave him a side glance because he was so serious about what he said. He went on to tell me that he started at a significantly higher salary than I had and that when he was hired he was told how much I made and to not to let me know how much he made. He then proceeded to champion my raise and got both of us put out to pasture. I never cared that he made more, but the disruption it caused was so laughable that we are good friends to this day and we both openly talk about our former employers actions.

i actually quit my job over finding out that the cart boy at my store got paid 5$ an hour more than me to smoke weed behind the store and spend all day in the break room while i busted my ass and did everything i was asked to do by management even working 24 hour shifts

I have worked for companies on both sides. Ones that are OK with you discussing your pay and ones that are not. It’s always seemed to me that it is a better work environment when the employer allows you to discuss your pay without any consequences.

I like that you have taken the guess work out of your pay scale. So at the drop of A dime you can explain to any employee why they get payed what they do and if you would like more money be more valuable to the company. Pure transparency. Thank you for the videos keep up the good work James.

My employer was paying another guy the same wage as me with 0 experience vs. my 20 years. Some employers just take advantage of people. Mainly because I don't like asking for raises but now I'm going to get paid because I'm not putting up with it anymore. Only reason I stayed because it was a good place to work and guaranteed 40 hours a week. They used me for cheap labor and I used them for experience.

I met a guy making way more money than me in the same position. When I had some conversations with him it was immediately apparent that he knew way more than anyone else in the shop. Both about the trade and about the plant. Why would I expect top tier pay when I'm not as knowledgeable as that guy? Only words I can think is entitled idiots.

You sir should be one of those people that travel around and teach companies how to be like you! Truth isnt always comfortable, and thats a huge problem these days. Kudos to you!

Honestly I work in IT in Europe and here we always discuss our pay with our peers. It's mandatory to know how much you're worth on the market. It's actually a lot more standardized here in tech because usually your pay is equal to the number of years of experience you have in what you're doing and of course it's related to the technology you're working with. Now there are slight differences form one company to another but if your salary is more then something like 10-20% lower then what other people get, then you know you are getting underpaid and you need to either get a raise by stating that you're getting payed less then what's on the market or change companies.

I once worked for a company that offered a 3% pay increase. When the managers found that I was seeking another opportunity my raise was increased 25%. Go figure.

Y'know what? Sometimes you astonish me with the level of self-awareness you exhibit and can articulate without posturing. Good on you.

I wish I would have found an employer like you when I was younger and just starting in my career listening to you is a breath of fresh air God bless and good luck

You handled that extremely well. Your explanation to the young lady was on point. Her reaction of crying is entirely understandable, because she had just had her world rocked. My question is; what happened next? Did she go back to work, did she take some time off to process what she had been told? Did she quit? Did she seek out ways to improve herself so as to qualify for more pay?

Most managers and/or business owners don't take the time to even ask these questions, let alone offering solutions that benefit everyone involved. Good on you, James.

I recently recieved a $7 bump because I asked the new employee how much she was getting paid. She had no experience and was very unreliable. Talked to my boss and we went to hr together and he helped me get what I deserved. But very true, it can be an extremely tricky subject at work.

I love the way successful people talk and think. Strong work sir.

The only time I discussed pay with a co-worker was when it was clear to us that our pay was evened out at one particular time. He got a significant raise and I got a much smaller raise. We had about the same amount of experience (he probably had a little more) and doing the same work (desktop IT support). He asked if I was upset, and I truly wasn't. I was happy for him that he got a good raise.

I really wish there were more bosses like this. Honesty, respect and understanding. Sounds like the roadmap to what used to be called a company man (person).

James, if more of the world was as candid and down to earth with their employees and their customers as you are, Walkouts and Strikes would cease to exist. You had me ready to charge in here all "workers rights!!!" but this is an excellent way to look at the subject, and I really appreciate your perspective. Thanks for the top-shelf content, bud, as well as for being an all-around good dude.

It amazes me how well thought out your arguments, side bars, and asides are. I am glad the algorithm put your face on my feed. I am even more glad that I watched that first video (a short). I can't get enough James. GREAT STUFF, KEEP IT UP!

You are spot on. And handled that impromptu conversation very well. The lawyer part is so true.

James, I'm glad that you mention "value to the company" in the same breath as "earnings to the company". For most of my carrer I've been employed in positions that didn't directly generate revenue for my employer, but they were still critical to the functioning of the company. It is good to recognize both the people who actually do the work that brings money into the company as well as the people who do the work that allows the company to function.

Years ago, we had a bunch of new IT techs join the company and they were earning more than the other techs and their supervisors. Management said "well that's the market rate". They wouldn't adjust the existing staff .....so all is senior guys left and they were stuck with the juniors

This is one of the very few things I miss from my 20+ years in the Navy. All you had to do is look at someone's rank device to know how much they were getting paid, talking about it was no big deal. In my Naval afterlife I I have worked for three companies (now working for the DoD), pay is somewhat taboo. What pay step is known, but where you sit on the step and what you are really getting paid is not, and that makes people uncomfortable to discuss the topic. If my coworker is getting more money and they have more training, skills, and/or education, then they have worked for that extra pay, so no, not butt-hurt. But, if they are a useless lump that is blowing someone important, then that might annoy me a bit.

Having an open policy allows people to know where they stand and more importantly what it takes to step up. You have to look out for yourself, not one else will.

I worked for a company for 5 years and was recently fired, I made more than my boss because I bust my ass daily and sacrificed a lot for the corporation, worked 6-7 days a week, went in early stayed late all of that, I was promoted to supervisor then manager and then stepped down because the amount of work for pay was not worth it to me. So the guy who took my job and was my direct supervisor found out I made more than him, long story short I was fired within 6 months. Fuck large corporations I started my own company and now I have one goal ruin that place, take all their customers and make the store manager look like a fucking idiot which I will do because I am hungry. He was a mentor to me, now he’s my target and I don’t miss.

I’m glad you point out that experience pays. I never finished college. I went from laborer and rose to Plant Manager at one location. We got sold and I was offered a laborer job at a different location because they were closing my location to eliminate competition. I still got the manager pay for almost 3 years and ended up losing $3 an hour. I stayed there for 10 years and retired during Covid-19 layoff. I never told anyone what I was making! My new Boss found out and had a fit! My district manager told him to calm down because I had 30+ years experience and to never discuss it with anyone. If any other laborer asked I lied and said like $12 less than I was really paid.

I like your way of thinking James. Keep doing what your doing. Your lessons are invaluable to most of us! Thank you.

I am happy for those that can get the best value for themselves and their family. When I find out peoples salary I see what I can do here, or what I can do at another location. I try to glean what I can to change my conditions, and the highest pay raise I get is moving on to another company. thanks for all you do.

I work for the state so everyone’s pay is listed on the website. When I saw a discrepancy as a manager I brought it up to my director and requested a salary adjustment. When I saw it for myself, I did the same thing and came with “receipts”. I would come in with my certifications, job experience and education and seek a fruitful conversation. They’ve always been great listeners and have been considerate of those concerns.

I myself work at a small company, the mention of our pay between coworkers is an extremely rare occurrence and if it does happen, I tend to ignore it. I know I’m the lowest paid at the company I work for, but, I also know that my coworkers are higher skilled than me due to degrees or experience they have. I therefore choose to ignore any mentions of differences in pay because I know it’s not personal, it’s purely business.

This is my all time favorite video by James. I've watched it multiple times. Even though I'm retired, I find what he says very relevant.

My dad managed a bunch of engineers for an electric utility. As the company grew (more power plants built) they would go recruiting at nearby engineering colleges. Often when they hired a new engineer with zero experience, the company had to make higher offers to the new graduates than what the current engineers were making, to compete with other companies. Dad would make sure all the current engineers got a raise even if it meant they made more than him. The company made the wise decision to go along with my dad on increasing the other engineers' salary. Eventually they would also budget to catch up on my dad's salary too. They said they could not abide him making less than his employees. The company had such a good reputation for treating their engineers right, that some cross hires with experience from other companies would take a pay cut to come work for them.

I’m an electrician and we all think we are the bomb. When someone who is lazy knows how much you make they don’t tell anyone, they just point out all the flaws in your work to the various bosses and try to get you axed/laid off first. If they were a first rate employee their work would out shine everyone, and set the pace for the job. Good advice James. How do you know ALL this stuff? I haven’t met many people who are super fair and care about their employees and make money all at the same time!

James, as supervisor/ manager & Owner of a small business, I totally love this clip and conversation. This is always a tricky topic and difficult conversations to have about what a person is worth. It's extremely difficult to have these conversations without someone having hurt feels afterwards.

My boss is like you. He pays based on individual value. He also encourages us to talk about what we make and to help our team members achieve their own maximum value. It may not be best for every situation but here it seems to make a difference and I work along side with more people who get paid higher than at any similar place of employment would offer.

I was usually happy for them. It meant I had a chance to be there someday. It is easier to see that difference when the company you work for structures itself with clear definitions of what can be done to increase your value within the company. I have a couple of jobs where there didn't seem to be any reason to the pay of the employees, and it made everyone upset and frustrated for various reasons.

Every time I worked for a manager who discouraged discussing pay I found out they didn't pay fairly. Usually I would be the one who got screwed because I suck at negotiating. I usually don't discuss my pay, but I get suspicious now when a manager discourages it.

I really wish more employers looked at things like you do man.

Youbare spot on !! Love your bits of insight you give us. Keep yp the great work.

I am so happy to see more content on youtube from you. I absolutely enjoy all of your content!

Love it. I wish there was more bosses like you. Set up the workers for success, not failure.

I really appreciate you laying out the issue in an intelligent way. You obviously support worker rights while explaining the potential issues it might create. Honestly wish more business owners had your kind heart and intelligence because its sorely lacking in a lot of business.

Always love listening to your vids. Thanks for being you.

Good solid advice. Thanks.

I never get mad about people making more money than me if they're worth it. When I was fresh out of college I started working for a small managed services provider, or an IT company for business that didn't have IT and needed that kind of service. One of the rules was to not talk about pay. We all made probably within 10K of each other, which was surreal to me because my job was easy and the guy who made 10k more than me, their job was a lot harder than mine. Then we had our lead engineer who was absolutely brilliant and he got paid more than double my salary, I'd say close to triple. At first I was Ok with this, he's earned it right? Some day I'll get there. Well, this guy was my boss and he was an absolute load. Super smart, but super lazy. We started at 8 and he wandered in the office about 10 AM, and then took a 2 hour lunch at 11 AM. Sometimes he even came back to the office. Usually he just played video games when he came back.. anyway, we had a few larger clients that had very specific systems that this guy set up and his job was to train us. He never really did, the amount of bullshit I had to figure out on my own while being on the line with a client who pays us thousands of dollars a month was mine numbing. For the sake of privacy, we're going to call this guy Marty. One day the owner of the company said it was his dream that we'd all be as smart as Marty so we could just rake in the dough. When it was brought up about being compensated in a similar way, there were crickets. Not long after that a lot of us that started with the company while it was young left. It was apparent that it didn't matter what we did, the money wasn't going to get better. Now I make more than double my old salary with a lot less work and bullshit.

Aloha, i have talked with coworkers about pay and have found some made more than me, both male and female, but i also took into consideration they have had more years at the same job as well as more education. So I, of course, was happy for them and picked their brain on how i could achieve the same level they were on.

Hahaha that troll opening! Hell yeah, that's how you grab someone's attention! Well done!

Answers to your questions: 1. I don't recall ever actually discussing pay with any of my co-workers. I'm not sure if the subject never came up, or if we were all "old school" where certain topics were considered off limits. 2. I don't know how I would have felt had I found out I made more or less than someone else, but I am also smart enough to know that certain positions, education, and experience will likely create more pay potential. I would not be upset over this. However, if I was working side by side with someone doing the same job and I could see no difference otherwise, I think I would have felt slighted. But, I still don't know the story or reasoning and would not have questioned it. Enjoyed this immensely! I like the way you've restructured your company. Employees have opportunities to increase their pay, which gives them motivation to do their jobs better.

1. I have not discussed pay with coworkers, but my place of work has a given pay range for each position. 2. If someone is paid more than me I’m happy for them. It generally means that they either have more education or work experience that they put the effort into.

Your company sound like a great place you work and climb the ranks, if you have the will and desire to do so. Higher efforts= higher pay, seems fair to me

Yet another great conversation with a real-world problem, but more importantly, the SOLUTION. Thank you for running a great business model and sharing. We don't discuss pay at work, but we do discuss titles and ratings as they apply to the work we perform. I've never been unhappy with my particular rating because it reflects my investment in the company. HOWEVER, I have been angry for another employee with more education than myself who was not recognized for her hard work, and who was consistently denied a raise to the next rating several years running. Unfortunately, while we could all see the subtle racism and general misogyny of her supervisor, he was always very careful that there wasn't enough actionable evidence to take to HR. Luckily, with consistent support from her peers, she transferred to another department and is now thriving. We can't always advocate for ourselves. Sometimes it takes a group effort to help our co-workers get around the office roadblocks to get what they richly deserve.

I worked for Walmart for 15 years and have had that very same conversation about pay and the experience/qualifications of one person to another. It's not really an easy conversation to have. But when you lay out the facts and the why's it normally clicks with the employee. I agree 100% with your description and the way you deal with it now. 😊

Been watching your channel for almost a year and whilst doing so went from being an employee at car wash to beginning Hvac apprenticeship in a week! Your channel helped me see the opportunity of what going to trade-school can really make in my life and building foundation. Very grateful of your channel !

I love the fact that James knows it illegal, but also understands that companies do it anyway knowing that the recourse from the employee is often more trouble then it worth. The level of self awareness to understand that is rare in this day and age.

Great video James!! you always provide amazing Insite to many of life's issues in a proper, professional, and respectful way. Thanks for another great video!

Mr Butler, you are the epitome of logic and exemplary communication skills. 💥

MAN, I wish more owners/managers were like you.. If I were younger I'd love to work for you!! At the very least, would love to find someone with your common sense and logic.. Your employees are incredibly lucky to have someone with your mindset for a boss.. You truly do seem to look out for the best of your employees.

Great leadership video.. how to handel employees is a lost art.. Im impressed with your attitude. Thank you

Never discuss this with fellow employees, never. I learned this the hard way to!

I love your channel and your approach to employees and relationships with them. That said, being a gov’t employee is a different animal. Your pay is set. The only thing that affects it is seniority. And the only way to move up is if your boss gets promoted or retires or if your apply for a job someplace else in the government

Ive been in the same field for 15 years and never cared what others made. When ive happened to find anothers pay rate over the years ive certainly taken it into account, thought of the differences between myself and that person to see what they are doing differently and did what i could to raise my value. That was effective my first couple years working in my field (network engineer). Since then ive gotten numerous certifications (got 15 currently), outworked everyone else around me and made it a point to raise my value amd take more responsibility.. This has given me the ability to be one of the highest paid at my last few companies. I guess all that to say another persons pay has never been a consideration for me...unless im looking to get more pay and looking for what i can do to raise my value to achieve that higher pay.

I generally do not discuss pay with coworkers. It's not my job to determine pay rates and I don't want to have feelings hurt. Usually, I would be happy for a coworker if they were paid more than me. I want the best for those i work with. The only reason to look into your brother's bowl is to make sure he has enough food, not to compare yours to his.

I never get tired of hearing about your company's growth. This was fantastic...and handled greatly

I've worked for several different organisations over the years. I once worked a for an employer like you, and it was one of the best experiences I've ever had. He was a Vietnam Veteran; a conscript, and the whole experience for him had helped him understand what was really important in life. That included his business and how he treated his customers and staff. Pretty similar to you and that's probably why I enjoy watching your channel. In that company, we didn't really discuss wages with each other, even though it was allowed. We all felt fairly remunerated for our efforts and that the boss had our best interests at heart. Likewise, we looked after him and saved him a lot of overtime and travel time. I worked in a couple of companies that tried to prevent staff discussing wages. One, because they were ripping us off. The other because the boss and her husband played favourites with the staff and were not declaring taxes for the additional (off-the-books) pay of the favourites. Both places were pretty toxic environments. The funny thing about the first place was most of us were students and knew our rights. So more often than not, when some one resigned, they would report the company for wage theft and successfully sue the company for the substantial backpay. This company eventually changed its employment policy to exclude students, because they were too difficult to cheat. The other place had a pretty high turnover of staff (even the favourites eventually left on bad terms) and got a pretty bad reputation in their industry. At another place I worked for, everyone could work out your rate of pay by the job you perfumed in the organisation. It was very transparent on this, but you could get additional pay for useful additional profession skills you brought to the job (including other languages as you mentioned). The only times I saw people discuss their wages with colleagues was when they wanted to be boastful dicks. Love your work. Keep 'em coming. 👍👍

The world needs more bosses like you.

Great advice and mentality man

I once learned the pay of everyone else in my company, including my bosses, by accident. It really pissed me off, but I kept quiet, didn’t want to cause any drama (this was 25 years ago). It just showed me what they thought of me, wasn’t there much longer. Looking back, was the best decision I could have made

I watched your video while ago about sending your company up so that your books are basically available to all your employees. It's a great video and I have been striving to organize my company in the same way so that we can have full transparency and promote a better workplace. Thanks for being some guy on the internet. You do a tremendous amount of good with these videos.

How a person talks to the boss can make a difference. If you convey that you understand business and respect, without looking like a wimp , can change things for you.

Food for thought. Thank you

I worked at Taco Bell and a coworker brought up pay. He has an ego and started off the conversation with everyone who was currently working bragging that he got a 2$ raise. Then he found out that he was only a dollar short an hour to be paid to one of the managers. No one knew how much I made because by this point I was getting paid $0.50 above that guy and did not want to starts more drama than a fast food chain already has. There would have been the difference between how we each got our raises that would have also created drama. He “negotiated” his raise (in other words he kept bugging management till he got the raise. Not kidding. He would ask at least one time a shift for a raise for over a month.) I was offered the raise and never brought up getting paid more. I kept my mouth shut. He was an ass anyway I did not want him to have the knowledge and use it against me somehow.

I wish more employers had that mindset. I respect your grind brother. Keep up the good work!

I think people should talk more about everything, especially pay. This makes us all more knowledgeable. Imagine a scenario where the manager in your story had already known all the topics you presented in this video. She could have explained, while socializing off company time, the ideas. Their conversation could have trickled through both employees social circles just like your video. No work would have been lost and the company didn't have to educate the employee. All parties concerned would have benefited greatly. Expand this concept out and a whole country would become more productive. Your video proves it. Thousands of people may now have the ability to effect great improvements in the lives of us all because you made the effort to educate us all; in a very efficient way. While seeking entertainment we were presented with a master class on employee relations. Thank you for your work.

I agree 100% because if you allow your employees to talk to each other about their pay, it can cause drama and other problems in the workplace and instead of the work getting done, they’re complaining about all this person’s getting paid more of that person‘s getting paid morein reality if you keep your page yourself and what’s going on and just worry about what you gotta do for work, everything will run smoothly and everybody can get along

In Sweden you can just ask the government for anyone's income and they have to give it to you. It's a public record.

I'm not your usual demographic, older female. However , I love your sense of humor and common sense. I shared your flamethrower video with my brother and he had raffle tickets for the same flamethrower! We both love that thing. Lol - in the workplace I don't discuss pay, I'd rather rescue dogs. Never liked drama. Have a great weekend and happy Father's day to all the dada!

Oooh, free merch!? Throwing my hat into that ring. As for discussing pay with coworkers, I used to work for state and local government where our pay rate was available to the public. It was always fun to look and see how much your boss was making. It was a motivating factor to do better and aim higher.

As a contractor for department of defense related company after my service in the Marine Corp I quickly learned that the less others know about you the better off every one is. Due to experience and education my pay was noticable higher than my peers. There was an incident where the main character in the drama created involved himself in my divorce. He eventually got terminated, and a revocation of his security clearance. Which in turn made it impossible for him to get employment in any other department of defense related company. I love your no nonsense, and very direct path to clear up the drama in your operation (company).

❤ this is super awesome and yanno how nice it was for you to even give her a chance? Excellent job, friend!

I originally came to your page for the humor. I stay for both the humor and the wisdom. At times these past 6-8mths, almost makes me wish I could move to NC & work for you, sir!

As a business owner (home renovations) I agree with you 100%. Nothing creates discord like discussing your pay with another employee. The other employee may be frustrated that their pay isn't as high as the one discussing it, or perhaps they are higher, but not by much. Either way, it creates hard feelings when the employees don't understand the pay scale system that the employer may use. One thing that always amazes me is that employees don't understand the business, the risks, and the expenses (overhead) that are entailed with running a business. Let's say a customer has an issue caused by an employee. The business owner has to rectify the issue (assuming they want to maintain a good reputation) at their expense, but the employee still gets paid. This is one of many risks that the business owner assumes. TBH, I like to give employees a little latitude, but I don't have much patience for an attitude. Thanks James.

I won a big EEOC case in the early 90's. As an experienced female semi driver, I was tasked to train new hires to operate frameless dump boxes. They had experience as drivers, but NOT semi dump boxes. This is a specialized skill. There are many potential dangers involved. I also had to make sure they knew our routes, as well the unique procedures for all of our customers and our supply lines. Imagine MY surprise to learn that MANY of my trainees were hired in at a higher rate of hourly pay than ME!! OOOPPS!! I had lawyers begging to represent me when they fired me for filing my official complaint. I also had NUMEROUS job offers. Not only did I have a great reputation in the industry... hiring me brought government bonuses as well. I was a rarity in my field at the time. By the way... trainees were told NOT to tell me their pay details. BUT. .. The one who didn't like to take instruction from a woman couldn't help himself 😅 He ALSO cost that company A LOT of money! I had flunked him for unsafe practices. But he was a friend of the owner... 😂 SO my report was ignored. He tipped a trailer over while dumping his overweight load. The boss gave him another chance! THEN... He forgot to set his brakes when he stopped at a convenience store. His truck rolled across U.S. 20 and struck a few trees. LOL... He had his wife come to get him because he had been drinking 😮😅 He abandoned the truck and didn't call the boss. That REALLY HELPED my case against Fancher Trucking! Yup! Ollie Fancher hired his old drinking buddy!! Anyone who was a rock hauler in Northwest Indiana back then KNEW my name. 😅

I was a contract software developer for years and YES, I did talk to other contractors about pay--as contractors we view it as market research. Also as a contractor, if someone was paid more than me, I wouldn't get upset--they either were worth more or better at negotiating than I was. I really enjoy listening to your business discussions. If more business owners were like you, this would be a much better country. You are honest and fair with your customers and your employees and it has a positive effect on the world.

Honestly, at this point I would be thrilled to have any job at any amount of pay and I would not care what anyone else is making. I'm in recovery from drug addiction, I have been clean for over 10 months, But my history has made it very difficult for me to find employment and while I understand it It's very upsetting and very painful to be unable to get my life in order the way I want to.

Im very glad to have the coworkers and manager i have. When I got a promotion, I didn't have to ask about a pay raise. She told me about it before I even thought to ask about it. Plus most of my coworkers are pretty chill. When I found out my new coworker in the same position was making more than me, he was very clear that the only reason why he was getting paid more,was because our manager didn't want him to take a pay cut after leaving from the same position at a different company. I dont think anyone would treat me differently anyway. Even people above me treat me with respect. Respect is incredibly important, not just for the people above you, but also the people below you too. Also, remember that there are plenty of legitimate reasons why your coworker may make more than you. Its ok to ask why and you don't feel safe asking, you have much bigger issues

I've worked as a carpenter for 30 plus years and personally I never talk about my pay it's always drama. The best policy is to be friends heck cut up but do your work professionally and efficiently at the end of the day we all have our own problems to deal with. Your spot on and I just wish more people understood that.

Hey, as a high school grad as of this year, your videos are helpful to me as I am preparing to starting a living. It is scarry starting out but listening to someones experiences lets me think and determine how I would make decisions in a similar situaction. It helps that you have fun stories and are a lively narrator but not too loud and obnoxious. So Thank You.

Holy crap! You got me in the first half. I'm not going to lie.