Nike to give more than 7,000 employees raises

NEW YORK: More than 7,000 Nike Inc employees will be getting raises after an internal pay review, undertaken after claims of workplace misconduct and discrimination against women, shook the company and forced out several of its top executives.

Nike cast the pay changes as part of its effort to maintain a corporate culture “in which employees feel included and empowered,” according to an internal memo sent to staff on Monday. The New York Times reviewed a copy.

The company, which is based in Beaverton, Oregon, said the changes would affect about 10% of its 74,000 employees worldwide.

Two months ago, Mark Parker, Nike’s chief executive, pledged at a companywide meeting that Nike would alter its compensation and management training programmes to reflect its goals for equal pay and work force diversity.

He apologised to the gathered workers for missing signs of discontent.

In an internal revolt this year, women at Nike said they were fed up with a company that they accused of tolerating bad behaviour and excluding women from its top jobs.

At least 11 senior managers have left in the aftermath of an investigation into widespread allegations of harassment and discrimination.

Such an overhaul is rare in the corporate world, but the shake-up at Nike has been seen as an illustration of how pressure from employees is forcing even huge companies to quickly address workplace problems.

“Nike analyses its employee compensation annually, but this year it did a deeper analysis of all roles, at all levels globally,” the memo said. “As a result, we are making adjustments.”

News of the pay raises was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal.

Nike also announced changes in how it will calculate employee bonuses, which were based on a combination of corporate, team and individual performance. They will now be determined mainly by the company’s results.

Increasing attention to gender and racial pay inequities has prompted some businesses to adjust their compensation.

More than 100, including large companies such as AT&T Inc, Gap Inc, MasterCard Inc and Target Corp, have publicly pledged to review salaries annually and work to close gaps.