ATTRIBUTIVE CRITERIA FOR WAGE PREMIUMS: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON DISTRIBUTIVE JUSTICE

ABSTRACT

Three modes of salary distribution are usually advanced by the theoreticians of the distributive justice: equality, equity and need. Here, we have examined their respective influence while taking in consideration (with regard to the equity) the performance of the employees and their degree of allegiance/rebellion to discriminatory hierarchical injunctions while taking into account the reasons of this allegiance/rebellion (allegiance by conviction, legalism or opportunism/ethical rebellion). This research confronted 511 French employees to a concrete case in which they had to advise a person in charge of an agency as for the distribution of a bonus between his different employees. These last were characterized by their respective performance, one of them being definite as being (or no) financially in the need and as having (or no) complied to a discriminatory hierarchical injunction towards the strangers. The results show that the distribution of the bonus follows the equity rule and, but more weakly, the need rule: the most efficient employees, and the employees financially in the need are the most rewarded. Otherwise it is to note that the allegiant employees are rewarded in an identical manner, whatever the reason of their allegiance, as well as the rebel one.

KEYWORDS: distributive justice; equity; performance; allegiance; ethics

PAGES: 251-269