When discussing employment, it is important to understand the difference between wages and salary. While these two terms are often used interchangeably, there is a distinct difference between them that is important for any worker or employer to understand. This article will explore what exactly the differences are, as well as their advantages and disadvantages.
What are Wages?
Wages are paid by an employer to the worker depending on the total hours spent doing the job and the work completed during those hours by them. They are flexible and can be changed based on the work completed and the hours spent doing the job.
Usually, production industry workers are given daily remuneration and wages. Although paid based on hourly work, one can be paid wages for a specific time, like the decided amount for the month or week.
Since wages are paid based on the hours spent doing the job and the work done, higher work hours mean you will get paid more. And an absence of work hours means you won’t get the wages for that day.
Advantages of Wages
Below are some of the main benefits of wages:
- More Work Flexibility: Employees working based on wages can work based on their selected hours. Further, since wages are earned based on hours worked, working overtime can help you earn more.
- Less Work Responsibility: There are fewer obligations and work responsibilities for workers working on wages. Since work is done based on hours, employers assign work that’s feasible to complete within those hours.
- No Binding Contracts: Legally, no contracts can bind a worker on wages to stay with the firm. The individual is allowed to change jobs as they, please.
Disadvantages of Wages
While there are advantages of wages, it also comes with some disadvantages, such as:
- Pay Cuts: Workers on wages get paid for every hour they work, and most of the time, these hours are not fixed. Firms or companies that are not established may even cut work hours to reduce their expenses.
- No Employee Benefits: Workers on wages do not get employee benefits, such as paid leaves, insurance, access to provident funds, or travel expense reimbursements.
What is a Salary?
A salary is a decided amount of money given to an employee of a company every month in exchange for their work and services provided to the employer. It’s an income negotiated between the employee and employer when hiring and can be increased yearly based on performance.
Salary is usually decided based on the employee’s roles, responsibilities, experience, and qualifications. Unlike wages, salary is a predetermined amount given to the employee regardless of the hours worked.
Advantages of a Salary
- Consistent Pay Calculation: Fair compensation is given to employees. Further, the accounting department in the company also benefits because of the uniformity of pay calculation where they are better able to issue everyone cheques a regular intervals.
- Compensated for Responsibilities: Since salaried employees have more responsibilities where they might have to work extra hours on unofficial times or weekends, they are compensated for that with bonuses or other perks.
- Employee Benefits: A salaried employee can enjoy all the employee perks like paid leaves, bonuses, insurance, remote working, and a flexible work schedule. Some companies even cover commutation and accommodation costs.
Disadvantages of a Salary
- No Overtime Pay: While the pay is consistent for salaried employees, it’s also fixed, and there’s no additional income for overtime.
- Odd Working Hours: Sometimes, the salaried professional has to work overtime on odd hours, on weekends, or even during their time off. This may disrupt the employee’s work-life balance, and sometimes even their physical and mental health is at stake due to improper schedules.
- Missed Bonuses: It so may happen that an employee won’t receive their yearly bonus if they do not reach their performance benchmark, even after completing more hours.
What’s the Difference Between Wages and Salary?
So, what makes wages and salaries differ from each other? Here are some points of differences you should be aware of:
| Differences | Wages | Salary |
| Skills | Workers on wages may or may not require a good educational degree | Professionals should hold a degree, certain skill sets, and sometimes even a license |
| Cost Structure | Erratic, depends on the hours put in and amount of work done | Fixed and negotiated at the time of recruitment |
| Payment Frequency | Weekly or daily, depending on the employer | Given monthly at the decided annual amount, which is equally distributed over 12 months |
| Payment Basis | Hourly and according to the industry standards | Based on role, experience, qualifications, and industry average |
| Nature of the Job | Administrative and corporate jobs | Manufacturing jobs |
| Performance Review | No performance review for wage workers | Salaried employees get periodic performance reviews |
| Purpose | Wage workers are expected to get the work done | Salaried employees are expected to have a role in increasing the company’s revenue |
| Paid Leaves | No paid leaves | Have a proper paid leaves schedule that differs from company to company |
| Notice Period | Wage workers don’t have to serve a notice period or give a structured resignation | Salaried individuals have to serve a notice period that acts as a time limit for the company to replace them |
| Duration | Changes as per the existing rate and hours done | Stays the same throughout the year; unless there’s a performance bonus or promotion |
| Examples | Bankers, lawyers, doctors | Carpenters, electricians, construction workers, welders |
Wages and salaries are two forms of remuneration used to compensate employees for their work. While salaries provide more stability and predictability, wages offer more flexibility in terms of hours worked. Understanding the differences between wages and salary is important for employers and employees alike, as each comes with its own advantages and disadvantages.
