Katlego Sekhu

Anonymous recently saw a colleague’s pay slip by mistake, he claims, and to his surprise – the colleague earns three times more than him. This doesn’t sit right with Anonymous and he wants to know if he is within his rights to take this up with senior management.
“I saw my colleague’s payslip by mistake. I had asked her to print something for me and she said I can do it myself and Lord and behold. My colleague and I do the same job and to my shock, she earns three times more than me. Since I saw her payslip I have not been okay.
“My colleague is generally a nice person and I don’t want to cause a rift between us in our department. I am really thinking of calling a meeting with HR. People in our department and the line manager I feel there is a vast difference in our salaries. Am I within my rights to find out what is what?”
Anonymous
It is important to note that you are not entitled to know exactly how much your colleague is being paid. However, you are entitled to know if you are being fairly compensated for your work. If you believe that you are not being paid fairly, then you can take it up with your manager or Human Resources.
It is also important to be aware that there may be valid reasons why your colleague is being paid more than you. For example, they could be more experienced, or they may have a higher level of education.
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