What we are announcing today as a company is something I have wanted to do since 2009. I am proud to say that I am finally in a position to incorporate this new, perhaps radical, way of doing business.
The sector in which I carry out my business is not recognized for inclusionpeople first. Working at a fast casual restaurant is often seen as a step down from its big brother in the industry; full-service restaurants. My industry typically sees 100% revenue year over year, exploits minimum wage workers to maximize profits, and offers little opportunity for growth. There is a fairer path to take.
When we launched our first location in 2021 (we now have three locations with a support kitchen), I knew I wanted to create systems and processes to put our people first like the industry had never seen before. During this journey, I encountered cynicism from people in the industry, but I knew that to create a new company I would be misunderstood and doubted.
We started by paying a “starting income” of $19 an hour (I banned the use of minimum wage) without asking our customers to supplement this income with tips; at Brasa Peruvian Kitchen we have a no-tipping policy because I believe it is my sole responsibility to pay a living wage, not our customers. Our team members, both full-time and part-time, receive benefits on their first day of work, not after a three-month probationary period.
I am constantly told that our benefits program is more robust than Starbucks’ and we supplement it with real learning and development opportunities. We currently have two people who started with us a year ago making $19 an hour and now make more than $60,000 in more senior corporate roles.
I’m happy to share that our company is demonstrating transparency with accurate details regarding a topic that is taboo in most organizations. We’re going beyond sharing salary ranges for roles across the company.
Can we really claim to be transparent organizations without going all the way? Convention has traditionally held that it is punishable to discuss compensation with colleagues and colleagues. According to 15Five, a performance management software company, fair compensation is consistently ranked in the top 3 reasons why employees choose a career. *
Why we did it and what I believe the value is:
- I would like to work for a company like this, so it’s my responsibility to build it for others.
- To help us build a performance-driven company where team members who have the greatest impact are compensated appropriately regardless of experience or tenure.
- I believe this will be a motivational tool for some of our new team members.
The key element of this document is the column titled “Employee Journey” where we capture and share instances where a team member has excelled. This will give color to why the individual earns what they do.
We have other creative strategies based on People-First culture waiting to be implemented, but first let’s launch this one to improve our workplace.
I would be happy to help you if you are interested in exploring this for your company. Simply email me am@brasaperuvian.com.
Michele Falcone
Founder and CEO, Brasa Peruvian Kitchen
Source: https://www.15five.com/blog/what-matters-most-to-your-employees/
