Market wages, by balancing the demand for workers with the supply, ensure that the interests of employers and workers coincide. Comparable Worth Pay System Wages determined by a comparable worth system will, in general, be different from market-based wages, because this type of system does not consider the demand for or the supply of workers for a particular job. Instead, it bases wages on the attributes of each job. Under a comparable worth system, a group or individual, which I'll call a job evaluation committee, determines the relative value of different job types by awarding points to job attributes. The committee then adds up the points in some fashion for each job it evaluates and places jobs with similar point totals in a single job grade.
Salary ranges then are determined for each job grade.
The ranges likely encompass the market wages of every job in a grade. According to the comparable worth system, if custodial and clerical workers are in the same job grade, they should be paid the same. This wage generally differs from the market-based system, because the latter doesn't force this equality. If the comparable worth system generates a wage below the market wage, a firm has problems. It will be unable to attract workers with adequate skills, and it will lose existing employees to other firms or institutions.