Too many businesses still treat fair pay like a favour and as if offering a liveable wage is a bonus and not the basic starting point. Paying people fairly is the bare minimum. If someone is doing the work that helps your business grow, then they deserve to earn enough to grow too. If your people are putting in the work but you choose to reward that with bare minimum pay, expect them to adjust their effort to match their compensation.

Wages shouldn’t be framed as kindness. They should be aligned with responsibility, contribution and the cost of living. When people are underpaid, it doesn't just affect their morale, it affects their quality of life. And no matter how good your culture or how flexible your hours, if people can’t afford to live decently off their salary, then something is broken. It either means you genuinely can’t afford to keep them, in which case you should let them go and give them a chance to earn better pay elsewhere, or it means they’re producing, you’re making money and you’ve simply chosen not to value them. If it’s the latter, then don’t be surprised when that shows up in their output and eventually, in your bottom line. Why let it get that far?