Section Foura base rate and increase their compensation as they master a
sequence of skill blocks. Typically, employees take several
years to master the content of all skill blocks because they are
generally fairly broad. For example, at a General Mills plant, all
of the production processes are contained in four skill blocks.
One of the more difficult aspects involved in the administration
of skill-based pay involves the determination of the amount of
pay that should be assigned to skill blocks. Nonetheless, market
survey data are often used to establish the range and average
values for skill blocks.^23
Skill-based pay is often implemented in conjunction with
semiautonomous work teams. In such applications, employees
master the skills required for a job and then rotate into another
job in the team until its skills are mastered, and then into the
next, and so on. Upon completion of the rotation, the employee
can then move into another team and acquire more skills by
rotating through its various jobs. Certification and recertification
of skill block mastery is assessed through various approaches.
Testing approaches, which constitute one means of
certification, often involve sample observations of work, written
tests, and oral examinations. Other certification approaches
include assessment by multiple evaluators, including
supervisors, peers, technical experts, management committees,
and human resource personnel. Skill-based pay’s focus on
compensation for skills also is contained in approaches used