Deciding Between Location-Based vs. Value-Based Compensation

What do companies with in-person and virtual employees do when many of their workers can choose their own cost of living (COL)? Historically, salaries were local because everything was local. Most people lived near — or within a reasonable commuting distance to — their jobs. But the global health crisis of 2020 upended traditional work approaches. Companies went virtual, and many employees took advantage of that new flexibility to work from anywhere, seeking less expensive places to live.