Definition: The Act, Process or Instance of a Beginning
"the conversation that started it all"
It was thirty years ago that I first observed someone ask an employer for a salary advance. I was an intern at a manufacturing facility during my college summer break and a production line worker made this simple request to the supervisor: “It is the 27th of the month. Can I get ten days’ salary, and can you deduct it on the first when I get paid?” Fair enough I thought. After all, this individual had already earned their money. Yet, the retort from the employer was not to help but to scold. “You better take control of your life and manage your finances better. I am not your bank and not a lender.” I was taken aback… I never forgot it… someone in need had asked for money they had already earned, and they had been rebuffed.”
Courtesy of: Sisodia, R., & Gelb, M. J. (2019). The healing organization: awakening the conscience of business to help save the world . HarperCollins Leadership.
More and more hardworking employees are living paycheck to paycheck, workers are losing thousands of dollars a month to late and overdraft fees, and companies are struggling to recruit and retain the best talent.
rooted in purpose
laying the foundation for earned wage access
In 1920, the IRD mandated that businesses pay people faster, so they could collect taxes and run the government.
– parsons and wesep. the timing of pay 2011.
– amartya san nobel laureate
Earned Wage Access in HISTORY
In the mid 20th century, many artists and activists saw that workers were being treated unfairly and started proliferating their message through art and more.
Sixteen Tons is a song about worker exploitation written in the 1940s by Merle Travis. It tells the story of a coal miner’s hard life and poverty, of how the American capitalist dream impoverished many.
“You load 16 Tons, what do you get?
Another day older, deeper in debt St. Peter don’t you call, I can’t go I owe my soul to the company store.”
– Merle Travis. 1955
Earned Wage Access in MATH
For years, people have defined their wages by how much and how they’re paid.
But waiting to get paid is what makes workers vulnerable.
On average, workers lose $300 a month in late fees & penalties because they aren’t liquid enough to keep up with their expenses.
Payactiv CEO, Safwan Shah, discusses how policies and benefits have historically focused on how much an employee is paid, instead of when they’re paid, and how that can make an immediate and positive difference.
Dear Diary,
Today’s been a rough day. It just feels like it’s getting harder and harder for me to find any breathing room.
Lucas broke his arm at school today. Insurance will cover some of the medical bills but he needs physical therapy to make sure he doesn’t lose any range of motion. It is going to cost another $300, at least. After paying off the electric bill last week, we just don’t have spare cash. I already have over $1,000 on my credit card and I don’t know how I will pay that off.
And I can’t take extra shifts because there is nobody to watch Mark after daycare ends.
I tried asking Randy for a raise at work, telling him that the general store was getting
Dear Diary,
Today’s been a rough day. It just feels like it’s getting harder and harder for me to find any breathing room.
Lucas broke his arm at school today. Insurance will cover some of the medical bills but he needs physical therapy to make sure he doesn’t lose any range of motion. It is going to cost another $300, at least. After paying off the electric bill last week, we just don’t have spare cash. I already have over $1,000 on my credit card and I don’t know how I will pay that off.
And I can’t take extra shifts because there is nobody to watch Mark after daycare ends.
I tried asking Randy for a raise at work, telling him that the general store was getting more and more customers and that there had to be some room for me to go from $15 to $18 an hour. To be honest, I can’t even remember the last time I took a day off. He told me he’d try for next month, but right now there just wasn’t any space in the budget. When I asked for an advance on my paycheck, 20 hours of the 40 hours I’ve already worked this week, he told me it was against company policy to give employees risky loans. I wasn’t asking for a loan, I just needed to access the money I had already earned!
I just wish I could have some breathing room, just a few hundred dollars to get ahead of all this.
– Emily
more and more customers and that there had to be some room for me to go from $15 to $18 an hour. To be honest, I can’t even remember the last time I took a day off. He told me he’d try for next month, but right now there just wasn’t any space in the budget. When I asked for an advance on my paycheck, 20 hours of the 40 hours I’ve already worked this week, he told me it was against company policy to give employees risky loans. I wasn’t asking for a loan, I just needed to access the money I had already earned!
I just wish I could have some breathing room, just a few hundred dollars to get ahead of all this.
– Emily
Resources: GLOSSARY
Earned Wage Access has started a new and much-needed conversation on the importance of supporting employees through on-demand pay. It has also created a new lexicon for discussing employee dignity and financial wellness. We’ve created an easy-to-follow Glossary to outline these terms in the following section.
Book 2: INVENTION
Getting paid every 2 weeks is actually hurting millions of workers across the country. In fact, consumers pay $8 billion in overdraft fees each year and the number is only going up. Earned Wage Access takes advantage of technology to help workers access their money, as they earn it, to transform their personal finance journey.
