Our pay philosophy
Editor’s Note: This article was updated on April 29, 2024.
Equality is a long-standing value at Salesforce, and one of the most powerful examples of this is our ongoing commitment to pay fairness and equal pay. In 2015, we were one of the first companies to evaluate and address any gaps in pay among our global workforce. We’ve continued to improve upon our processes and broaden the scope of our assessment to include gender globally, race and ethnicity in the U.S., merit, bonuses, and stock.
But it’s not enough to address pay during compensation planning. We’re looking at every aspect of the employee journey to help level the playing field — from recruiting and hiring to promotions and ongoing employee success. There are many factors that contribute to pay inequality. Some are within our control and some aren’t, so we must continue to evaluate pay on an ongoing basis. Each year, we conduct an equal pay analysis as part of our annual compensation process, and make adjustments as needed to ensure pay fairness.
How we do it
The goal of our equal pay assessment is to identify systemic disparities in pay. Salesforce groups employees into similarly-situated (or comparable) roles and conducts an analysis to determine if there are unexplained disparities in pay based on gender globally. Employees in the U.S. are assessed again based on race. Our methodology accounts for legitimate, job-related factors that may explain differences in pay, such as work location and experience.
In 2021, we expanded our assessment to include equity grants as part of our annual stock refresh program, looking at the distribution of stock awards to eligible employees.
We report on our findings each year to drive transparency and hold ourselves accountable. In 2024, we added adjusted pay ratios across gender and race to our reporting, in line with industry standards.
Considerations for race
We recognize that it’s not enough to focus on gender equality alone. We evaluate pay disparities among gender globally, then we analyze pay disparities among race and ethnicity (in the U.S.). By focusing on different races and ethnicities, we can have a more complete picture of each employee and better address their unique needs.
Currently, we have the most comprehensive data for gender globally and race in the U.S. While we don’t publicly report on race and ethnicity outside of the U.S. at this time, we are evaluating our strategy for the collection of such data globally.
It’s more than just pay
Equal pay will continue to be a critical part of our pay philosophy, but we recognize that equal pay alone is not enough. We’re working to increase equality throughout the employee experience by introducing new and expanded programs, policies, and benefits to ensure that all employees are valued and empowered to succeed.
More information:
- Read our Stakeholder Impact Report
- Read our Annual Equality Update
- Visit Equality.com
