[overpaidgoogler]

A lot of people here are saying that if job titles/pay grades are public (which they are not completely) then so should pay be. The problem with this is that promotions are already very political. People can and do get very angry when other people get promoted before them. Non public pay and bonuses give management some wiggle room to reward people privately.

There is always some question about whether management or popular opinion is fairer. On this I will just say that more extroverted people will tend to favor popular opinion while more introverted people will tend to favor management.