Jeff Bezos, executive chairman, Amazon, reportedly made an annual offer to employees — $5,000 to quit. Aptly called the ‘Pay to Quit’ offer, it was made once every year so that Amazon was able to ensure that all the members of its workforce were loyal and actually sincere.
The scheme was launched in 2014 with the aim of retaining only loyal employees who were keen to grow in the company.
In the first year of employment the employees were offered $2,000, and the amount kept increasing by a thousand dollars every passing year, up to $5,000. Usually, the offer was made post the rush or peak season such as the holiday season after they were exposed to the work pressure, followed by a lean period. Of course, the organisation hoped that the employees would not take the offer.
The offer was made so that employees gave serious thought to what they expected from themselves and the organisation. This encouraged them to introspect and analyse whether they were in the right company, doing the right job. The dissatisfied or unhappy employees took this opportunity to accept the money and move on to a company that is more suitable to them.
The strategy works wonders in weeding out the employees who may not prove to be useful or meaningful to the organsiation. By offering this incentive, organisations can actually set their employees thinking and be honest to themselves.
