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# System prepended metadata

title: MVP Comp Proposal

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# MVP Comp Proposal

This proposal aims to solve many issues that stem from haywire compensation in GitcoinDAO, and be an interim state until we have a solid comp framework around the end of S14.

**TL;DR** Community ownership of a project rests on transparency, and transparency rests on legitimacy. Salary will be transparent to all DAO contributors, we'll use the same comp logic for all offers (incl using US market rates for any contributor), and all GTC pay will be denominated in stables.

## 1. Transparency

**What:** We state that our default is salary transparency. Each Workstream will arrive at internal transparency by S15. No [name=salary] connections will be externally published outright but we recognize at minimum that salaries are discoverable by DAO contributors.

**Why:** It narrows the wage gap between identity groups & increases worker solidarity. It is the DAO way & is required by stewards. *Stating* we have salary transparency matches the reality of crypto pay which is that salaries *can* be found out by researching docs & block explorers.

## 2. Global Salary Benchmark

**What:** We will use the US market rates as a starting point for salary suggestions. We’ll use the 50th percentile based on data from OpenComp, and add a 30% increase from that 50th percentile rate.

**Why:** Market data provided is base comp, not including healthcare, 401k matching, vesting or equity that is typical outside web3. We have assessed the value of Gitcoin Holdings’ benefits as well as other web2 companies and it’s clear that 30% is a minimum add on to be competitive with web2 jobs. Using this framework also increases equity between workstreams as well as between Holdings & the DAO, reducing the power imbalance/privilege that Holdings folks may have.

## 3. Saf & Loie are the Compensation Committee

**What:** This process is followed to arrive at any salary offers for core contributors (20+ hr/wk)⤵

1. An initial rate is suggested (by contributor, the person hiring them, or CC)
2. If not suggested by CC, the rate is submitted as a request for approval from CC
3. A CC member will claim the request, research & confer with committee members, and return a suggested offer within 2 biz days.

**Why:** Salary offers that were determined using one cohesive process are more fair. Without a legitimate process for arriving at salary offers, salary transparency could wreak havoc culturally in our teams. Salary has been yolo’d across the DAO. We don’t currently have a compensation machine that can be driven by just anybody. (More to say later, but this includes: our own competency leveling framework & better data on dao-space market rates) As we develop that self-driving machine over the course of S14, it makes the most sense for experienced People Operations folks with a view across the whole DAO to be giving these recommendations.

## 4. Denomination in stables

**What:** All core contributor pay should be *denominated* in DAI, as in:

You are paid 5000 DAI/month. On payday, 1GTC=5DAI, so you are paid 1000 GTC

**Why:** We will lose out on essential contributors if we cannot provide pay that is at least equal at the moment of payout to what was promised in pay negotiations. This relates heavily to DEI in the workplace: societally marginalized folks (who we KNOW are necessary team mates to accomplish our mission) are far more likely to need stable income.

# Where is this going in the future?

This is an MVP - let’s think of it as a minimum viable *policy.* These are actions we can take now. 
By the start of S15 we intend to have a Gitcoin-specific competency leveling framework and better market data on crypto industry salary levels, which will enable others outside the Compensation Committee to draft salary offers that are cohesive with the rest of the DAO. (This is something the People Ops team can deliver)
We intend also to have a treasury strategy that allows for more creative comp arrangements including percentages paid out in stables, incentives for GTC pay, etc. (This will require a big lift from Treasury Management)
We intend also to have a clearer framework for sharing salary data openly - either pay bands or something even more transparent. (This will require the participation of workstreams to arrive at defensible comp for all their contributors)
With a competency leveling framework & pay bands it will be clear to contributors how to level up & what skills Gitcoin values folks improving on the most.

### How to approach this proposal
What we’re asking for in this proposal is for folks to get on board this voyage to compensation legitimacy. We have mapped out the territory. Most of it is People Ops work but there are pieces (named above) that will only succeed with the dedication of others in the DAO. As you read this proposal you may ask yourself "What would need to be true in my domain to reach these 4 states?" Saying yes to this proposal is saying yes to taking whatever actions are in your domain to achieve what needs to be true.
