ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the general forms of work incentive systems and considers subjective reactions to incentives. A common distinction is that made between financial and non-financial incentives. The mobility incentive is built into the job evaluation scheme by paying higher level jobs more than lower level jobs. Privilege pay, like job satisfaction, is essentially a psychic reward. Authority pay is the promotion to a position of greater authority. To take another example of power pay, a branch plant accountant may be given the sole responsibility for forwarding accurate accounting reports to the home office of the firm. Status pay is the “cheapest” form of payoff for the organization. The company president gets more pay than the general manager, and both get more than machine operators. The cost of living argument for general wage movements is an extension of the consumer income viewpoint. The consumer income argument for moving wages upward or downward rests on the view that workers are consumers.
