Despite cooperatives’ history of commitment to values of social progress, our recent study of the General Manager Compensation Database reveals that grocery co-op General Managers who identify as female are paid significantly less than their male counterparts.
We’ll be sharing our findings over the coming year, but our work doesn’t end in bringing this to light. Launched in early 2021, the Gender Equity Project aims to serve as a call to action for all co-ops who value social justice in their communities and the world at large.
ColuminateJob Board
It can be challenging to find the right place to post your job openings and attract qualified candidates. The new Columinate Job Board makes it easy to post and fill all positions. Vist the Columinate Job Board.
GM Search
Support
Hiring a General Manager is one of the biggest decisions a food co-op Board of Directors will ever make. A thorough, thoughtful and transparent process is needed to ensure the best outcome. We’re available to help! Visit the GM Hiring Support page.
Compensation Database
The new Columinate Compensation Database includes GM, department, and administrative manager roles; tags to include trans and non-binary people; and tags so the database can report BIPOC equity issues and progress. Sign-up for the Columinate Compensation Database.
GM Development Services
Our experts offer guidance in: achieving financial metrics; accounting and financial document literacy; board relations and governance; marketing; HR; pricing and margin tools and POS systems; and co-op culture, diversity, and engaging stakeholders. Visit the GM Development Program page.
What We Know Right Now
Our study of pay inequity was based on the General Manager Compensation Database, which was created in 2010 to facilitate the anonymous sharing of compensation information among GMs. At the time, a question about gender was added to the database out of sheer curiosity. At the same time, there were also concerns that GMs who identified as people of color would not be provided anonymity by the almost entirely white dataset. There was a similar anonymity concern about gender identity.
Although our current data merely scratches the surface of uncovering the deep societal bias and structural inequities that are being mirrored in our very own co-ops, it illuminates vast pay inequality between grocery co-op general managers who identified as men and women.
-
At every level of sales volume, female GMs make significantly less than male GMs. This trend, first identified in 2016, has not improved; the disparities have only grown overtime.
- Gender representation in the position of General Manager was roughly equal among the small, medium, and large co-op groups. However, extra large co-ops in this self-reported dataset were twice as likely to have male General Managers.
What’s Next?
The disturbing trends in our current dataset poignantly highlight the need for better information to measure our progress on the long journey towards a more just and equitable world.
Columinate is upgrading the compensation database to capture other critical information on race and gender identity, and to expand the data set to include other senior leadership positions. As leaders look to the future with hope for societal change, this data will be helpful to organizations focused on addressing structural inequities.
How Can I Join Columinate on the journey towards pay equity?
- Reflect on your own co-op’s data. What are the powerful questions and issues about inequity in our sector that remain unanswered and unsolved?
- Read up on The Gender Equity Project. Learn more about the project by reading our collection of library articles below.
- Make sure your data counts. Sign-up for the Columinate Compensation Database.
Manager Compensation Examination: Gender Equity Gaps Persist
Three years ago, I presented a webinar with data showing that female food co-op general managers (GMs) were paid significantly less than male GMs. Since then, Columinate has rolled out a new version of the database I drew on for my data, with the ability to collect more detailed and nuanced information. Along with updated data and charts, with help from Mike Houston we have testimonials from co-op managers on the high value of what is shared through the Columinate Compensation Database.
Why Are Female General Managers Paid Less Than Men?
Our examination of the compensation database revealed that grocery co-op General Managers who identify as female are paid significantly less than their male counterparts. Here's what the data says.
Internalized Sexism in the Grocery Co-op World
To find out why the General Manager Compensation Database tells a story of accelerating pay inequity, Carolee Colter interviewed 30 female co-op GMs to learn more about their experiences. She uncovered some common themes.
Compensation Database: History and Future
The Compensation Database is woefully out of date when it comes to gender and equity identifiers. Columinate is creating a new version scheduled to be introduced in April 2021. Here's what features will be added to improve the database.