When did loyalty stop being rewarded? Just over a fortnight from now, Scotland will go to the polls to decide whether it wants to continue to be part of the United Kingdom. Whatever the result, Scotland will have done well out of the process. 

To sweeten the case for remaining a part of the UK, the Westminster government has been throwing incentives at the Scottish people, from promises to devolve even more power to commitments to award multi-billion dollar ship building contracts to the Glasgow docklands.  

Should Scotland decide to stay, the UK prime minister has also ruled out reform of the formula that sees Scotland allocated over a thousand pounds more per person than the UK average. What’s more, new borrowing and tax-setting powers are also set to come into force in 2016. From this experience, it would seem that threatening to leave is the best way to get rewarded these days.

This tactic is a useful lesson for any employee looking to extract a little more from close-fisted paymasters. Scotland is the noisy, foot-stomping, malcontent always threatening to leave. By contrast, Wales—the longest serving “employee” of the Union, with a contract going back more than 800 years—is content to have a regular whinge around the water cooler. We (speaking as a biased Welshman) can generally be relied upon to stay reasonably loyal, besides the odd historic uprising. Yet such blind fidelity has earned us few rewards. 

In Scotland, average wages are in the top three by UK region, behind only London and the South East. Wales, meanwhile, languishes in the bottom three. This has not always been the case. In 1997, when both countries held referendums about the devolution of power—75% of Scots voted for it, whereas in Wales it went down to the wire—the two were ranked 8th and 9th respectively (see chart). Since then, Scotland has been the highest regional climber, while Wales has slipped down one place to 10th. Northern Ireland’s sectarian troubles make it a special case.

Don’t bank on it
Likwise, loyalty counts for little in the corporate world. One example of this comes from the money-driven world of banking—a key pillar of the Scottish economy made nervous by the prospect of independence. When a banker switches jobs they are often asked to provide pay slips and bank statements to their new employee as proof of historic remuneration. According to one banking headhunter, the starting salary of any incoming employee leaving a long-term job behind will be bumped up in recognition of years of being underpaid. So why not pay them what they are worth in the first place?

Yes, it is hard to feel sorry for bankers about pay, especially when it is not unheard of—although unadvisable—for such pay slips to be photoshopped. But I am thinking here of a friend who recently decided to leave his investment bank after 10 years of long service. The milestone passed him by with no hint of recognition from his employer—other than being passed over for a promotion.

Admittedly, loyalty should not be rewarded in isolation. Pay days have to be earned. Simply staying put is no guarantee of value. Indeed, quite the opposite: the Welsh take more sick leave than most. We are also next to bottom of the productivity league tables—the curse of many a long term employee— while Scotland is again near the top.  

But as businesses move into post-crisis mode, employers have to rediscover their obligation to reward and incentivise their workforce. Blaming bed-hopping Millennials for high employee churn rates is being overly simplistic. Some firms are forward thinking. Accenture, a consultancy, awards ‘Celebrating Performance’ points to employees, which can be redeemed for table football tables (among other things). Others are not—particularly in the public sector.   

As for Scotland’s career path, it is no use showering the Scots with gifts now. Their heads have already been turned by the thought of independence. It may not happen now, but it will do soon enough. And when it does, Scotland will be one employee who truly is impossible to replace. Better to start investing in Wales now.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited (EIU) or any other member of The Economist Group. The Economist Group (including the EIU) cannot accept any responsibility or liability for reliance by any person on this article or any of the information, opinions or conclusions set out in the article.