A Seattle, Idaho, CEO gained national notoriety for setting a $70,000 minimum wage for all of his employees — and matching his own pay — resigned from the position of the company’s CEO he instituted misdemeanor assault charges in college.
Dan Price says he has resigned from credit card company Gravity Payments to devote more time to “fighting false claims”. Earlier this year, he was accused of trying to kiss a woman against her will, the Seattle Times reported.
Price recently resigned from The New York Times published an investigative story detailing numerous women’s allegations of inappropriate behavior. “Mr. “Price’s internet fame has led to abuse in his personal life and hostile behavior in his company.
“My No. 1 priority is for our employees to work for the best company in the world, but my presence here has become a distraction,” Price wrote in an email to his staff on Tuesday. “I must also step aside from these duties to devote all my time to fighting the false allegations against me.” he said, “I’m not going anywhere.”
Price did not elaborate on the allegations or immediately respond to a request for comment. Gravity Payments did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Price, a frequent critic of the huge pay gap between corporate executives and their employees, rose to prominence in 2015 when he announced he would raise every employee’s salary to at least $70,000. At the time, its 120 employees were paid an average of $48,000 a year, the Times reported.
He also lowered his $1 million to that floor by taking a pay cut of more than 90%, and paid about three-quarters of that year’s profits in compensation to cover the higher wages, the report added. Price said he will keep his salary low until his earnings are recouped.
On Twitter, Price touted the success of his company’s model and employee benefits. The minimum wage for workers is now $80,000, he said, and workers received a $10,000 base raise this year. According to him, the jobs usually attract more than 300 applicants.
The original salary level was set the same year Price won a legal battle against his older brother, Lucas Price. A three-week lawsuit ensued after his brother, Dan Price, claimed his rights as a minority shareholder were violated when he raised his own salary later that year. King County Superior Court ruled and ordered Lucas Price to pay his brother’s attorney fees, totaling $1.3 million.
The price has increased Between Melba and Marsing in Canyon County, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. He graduated from Nampa Christian High School in 2003. his father, Ron Priceis a longtime Boise business consultant, speaker and author.
According to the Times, Price was 19 when he started Gravity Payments in 2004 with cash from Lucas Price from his bedroom at Seattle Pacific University, a Christian liberal arts university.
In 2019, Dan Price opened 40 employees at 110 N. 27th St. visited Boise to open a Gravity Payments office at
Now 38, Price’s public persona revolves around his advocacy of average workers and criticism of big business. He is the 2020 author of Worth It: A Million-Dollar Pay Cut and $70,000 Minimum Wage Revealed a Better Way of Doing Business.
He also wrote that 98% of Gravity Payments employees volunteered to take a temporary pay cut of 5 to 100% to avoid layoffs. On Wednesday, Price said the company has never laid off an employee in its 18-year history.
Tammy Kroll, the company’s chief operating officer, has been promoted to CEO, Price said in an announcement.
Idaho Statesman Business and Local News Editor David Staats contributed.
This story was originally published August 18, 2022 at 1:32 p.m.
