The dynamic and solidarity-based pay system is an ongoing research project by the Donbat Institute focusing on remuneration, the redistribution of value and the material conditions required for a dignified life.

It begins with a simple observation: the statutory minimum wage establishes a legal threshold, but does not guarantee a genuinely sustainable standard of living. It takes little account of the diversity of individual circumstances: disability, single parenthood, dependent children, housing costs, other sources of income, place of residence or specific expenses. The project therefore seeks to move beyond the uniformity of the dominant pay model through a more situated, transparent and solidarity-based approach.

Origins of the Project

This research emerged from a concrete situation: the distribution of a European mobility grant requested by five people within a larger group. Faced with the risk of an opaque, unequal and potentially divisive distribution, a point-based table was developed to allocate the available resources according to the participants’ actual needs.

This experience constituted an initial instance of Donbat: a dysfunction was detected, identified and then transformed into a redistribution tool. It subsequently opened up a broader question: how could this type of approach be applied to remuneration within an organisation such as the Donbat Institute?

M.A.D. — Minimum Autonomy for Dignity

The project proposes working from a Minimum Autonomy for Dignity: a foundation for remuneration conceived not as an abstract minimum, but as a basis enabling people to secure housing, food, transport and healthcare, participate in social life and retain a margin of security.

This foundation must be adjusted according to each national context. In France, it may be defined using existing research on reference budgets and the income required for a decent standard of living, notably the work of economist Pierre Concialdi. In Germany, it must be developed through a comparable method, taking into account the Mindestlohn, the median wage and the actual cost of living, particularly housing, energy, food and transport.

Dynamic Point-Based Scale

The proposed system is based on two levels: a common foundation, the M.A.D., and a dynamic point-based scale that adjusts remuneration according to each person’s concrete circumstances and the responsibilities they assume within the organisation.

The criteria may include family circumstances, dependent children, single parenthood, disability or specific needs, the level of income from other sources, the proportion of monthly income spent on rent, responsibilities undertaken, the difficulty of certain tasks, the transmission of knowledge or involvement in collective life.

The aim is not to create a rigid hierarchy, but to make actual needs and contributions visible in order to organise a fairer redistribution.

Transparency and Collective Adjustment

The criteria must be explicit, open to discussion and revisable. They cannot operate as arbitrary decisions or as favours granted individually.

The amounts, the value of each point, the limits placed on pay differentials and the adjustment rules must be capable of being assessed and approved collectively. Solidarity thereby becomes a principle of internal organisation rather than occasional or charitable assistance.

Application within the Institute

For the Donbat Institute, this research directly concerns how the Institute wishes to organise its own operations. The aim is to align its ethical principles with its economic structures: not merely to advocate social justice, redistribution or the prevention of reproduced forms of domination, but to experiment with internal tools capable of making these principles concrete.

The dynamic and solidarity-based pay system is therefore an attempt to apply Donbat to the economics of work: detecting an imbalance within existing remuneration models, analysing their limitations, then developing a tool that can be transformed, transmitted and adapted by other organisations.

Project Status

Project currently undergoing research and formalisation.

Areas of Work

Minimum Autonomy for Dignity
Point-based pay scale
Redistribution of value
Solidarity-based pay
Economic transparency
Actual cost of living
France / Germany
Dignity in remuneration
Cooperative economy
Internal organisation of the Institute

Keywords

Donbat Institute
Fair pay
Donbat
Work
Redistribution
Solidarity economy
Dignity
Remuneration
Cooperation
Action research