Unilever is an international consumer goods manufacturer based in London and the Netherlands. Their products include beauty and personal-care goods, food and refreshment items, as well as home care goods. They are one of the leading soap manufacturers in the world, employing more than 155,000 people in over 100 countries. In 2014, Unilever made the strategic decision to improve their overall workplace conditions with regard to nondiscrimination and fair wages for all employees. They worked with the Fair Wage Network (www.fair-wage.com) to assist them in gathering information, which helped them level the playing field for creating an environment where all of their employees would be able to earn a living wage. Their aim was to be a truly responsible and sustainable employer and role model to themselves, others in their industry, as well as their vendors.

From their website, they list five principles on which their compensation strategy is built:

1. Fair and liveable compensation 2. Market-based compensation 3. No discrimination in compensation 4. Performance-focused compensation providing alignment to our business 5. Open and explainable compensation Unilever uses a localized approach to determining what a fair and living wage is. This includes evaluating each market they work within for things like market wage rates, cost of living, and more. This means that even though two people may be doing the same job in two different countries, their base cost of living can be markedly different. Unilever’s goal is to create a wage structure that, at the very least, provides enough for employees to provide food, shelter, clothing, and other basic necessities for themselves and their families.

They work with the Fair Wage Network to set up benchmarks in as many of the countries they work in as possible....

Questions 1. What sort of compensation method has Unilever established?
2. How can having transparent communication about their compensation strategies help or hurt Unilever’s approach to finding and retaining top talent? Who benefits?
3. What is the potential impact of Unilever’s compensation strategies on employee performance and longevity?
4. What elements of the compensation package do you think Unilever evaluated in becoming a fair-wage employer?
5. What components of an organization's compensation strategy were addressed in this case study?
6. What steps would you consider taking in evaluating your organization's compensation practices? What evaluation method would this be considered?