Every worker needs an economic salary, but also an emotional salary. Today we will find out how to increase the latter, what it consists of and what positive consequences we can achieve.
Last update: July 15, 2020
Paying the worker adequately and indeed, paying extra or giving bonuses is an incentive to keep doing their job well. However, the salary is not the only thing that matters. There is something that matters more: the emotional salary.
The professor of Neuroscience and Strategic Leadership Steven Poelmans states that "the emotional salary is the set of non-monetary remuneration that the worker receives from the company he works for and which supplements the normal salary with creative formulas, which adapt to the needs of the workers. of today".
The emotional salary offers several benefits. The main one is to motivate employees, but it also allows, and is perhaps the most important aspect, to "retain" talented workers in the company. This last point is so fundamental that we will devote more space to it in this article. But let's start by making a distinction between the different types of emotional salary that exist today.
Types of emotional salary within a company
Although the types of emotional salary depend on the sector and, specifically, on the company, we can highlight those that are considered basic for the well-being of employees and for the good functioning of the organization. They are the following:
- A good working environment: it is essential for workers to feel comfortable and for teamwork to work. Business psychologists can help resolve various conflicts that may arise, in order to manage them in the most appropriate way.
- Personal and professional development: offering training to employees so that they can continue to acquire knowledge and ensure skills is essential. If they are also offered the opportunity to grow within the company, this will certainly have a positive impact.
- Compatibility with privacy: offering days off to visit doctors or to preside over personal events, as well as flexible working hours, the ability to work from home once a week or have days off to do your own chores are some ideas that work well.
- Have a say in business decisions: being able to rely on employee opinion to make decisions is important. They are a fundamental part of the company. Without them, nothing works. For this reason, giving them a voice, listening to them and showing them that they are important is a very important type of emotional paycheck.
The most productive work is that produced by a happy man.
-Victor Pouchet-
The importance of not letting go of talent
In a way, the options with which to pay the emotional salary in a company help to retain talent. This is despite the fact that it is necessary to understand what kind of workers we want to hire. Each company has its own values and if the candidates running for the job we offer do not meet these criteria, no matter how hard we try to offer them an emotional salary, the results will not be as expected.
For this, all companies must have a clear idea of ​​their “ideal candidate or worker”. In this way, they will also be able to highlight some types of emotional salary that can be really important, and leave those that are less important in the background.
Talented people bring great value. They are gifted with creative minds, they help drive the business forward and achieve results that previously seemed unattainable. They are people who fall into the category of "ideal candidates" and who, once acquired, it would be a mistake to let go.
The added value of a company
A decent salary at the end of the month is not enough to ensure that talented employees continue to stay in the company. If another company offered them more flexible hours, a space used as a nursery for young children, a kitchen to have lunch so they don't have to leave the office or spaces to rest and take a break… would they refuse it?
My job is to give my staff enough knowledge so that they can then take my place.
-Steve Jobs-
Every worker needs a certain emotional salary, not only to feel appreciated, but also to continue to grow, develop and give the best of themselves to the company. This will result in an input that will lead to the achievement of goals and successes. A working relationship from which both the company and the workers will emerge as winners.
