At the 2014 Grace Hopper Celebration, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was asked what women should do if they are reluctant to ask for a raise. He replied:
It's not really about asking for the raise but knowing and having faith that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along. And that I think might be one of the additional superpowers that quite frankly women who don't ask for raises have. Because that's good karma, that'll come back.[1]
This is unequivocally bad advice. Despite the fact that women are much more likely than men to be perceived negatively for asking for a raise[2], people of all genders who do not negotiate salary end up being paid less than those who do.
Online reaction to Nadella's statements was swift[3][4][5][6], and the story quickly received extensive media coverage around the world.
Nadella took to twitter shortly after the session, saying that his remarks had been "inarticulate". He later sent out a company-wide email at Microsoft, characterizing his response to the salary question as "completely wrong".
Media coverage
- Selena Larson @ RWW: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to Women: Don't Ask For A Raise, Trust Karma -- "This is not good advice"
- Kara Swisher @ Recode: Open Mouth, Insert Foot: Microsoft CEO Tells Women Techies to Trust “Karma” on Pay Inequity
Analysis
- Claire Cain Miller @ NYT: Why Microsoft’s Nadella Is Wrong About Women and Raises
- Bryce Covert @ ThinkProgress: Microsoft CEO Tells Women In Tech Not To Ask For Raises, Then Backpedals
Resources
References
- ↑ Transcription from Christina Warren of Mashable: http://i.c-mac.me/XxsR
- ↑ http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/cfawis/bowles.pdf
- ↑ https://twitter.com/hypatiadotca/status/520256470445596672
- ↑ https://twitter.com/catehstn/status/520256058820788224
- ↑ https://twitter.com/Lauren_Schaefer/status/520254407359750144
- ↑ https://twitter.com/freebsdgirl/status/520314887084720128
