What do you call the payment structure where employees are compensated based on their output, either hourly or piece rate?

The payment structure where employees are compensated based on their output, either hourly or piece rate, is referred to as a wage. Wages are generally considered to be the compensation paid for work done, and they are typically calculated either on an hourly basis or based on the number of units produced, which is known as piece rate. This type of compensation incentivizes productivity, as employees are rewarded based on their individual levels of output, making it a common practice in industries where quantifiable deliverables are essential, such as manufacturing or agricultural work.

The other forms of compensation mentioned, such as salary, commission, and profit sharing, do not embody the same structure based on direct output measurement. Salaries offer a fixed amount regardless of output, commissions are typically linked to sales performance, and profit sharing involves distributing a portion of a company's profits among employees, which can depend on overall business performance rather than individual output.