Half the developers salaries are more than the managing partners salaries (although the managing partners get a bonus which then makes their annual income higher than anyone else in the company so long as the company does well).
When I tell the employees not to discuss salary I offer them a few things to say in case another coworker asks them. My first go to reply is "I consider my salary and finances to be private matters that I don't tend to share with others." or "We're coworkers, what good could possibly come from us talking about this? The only outcome is someone, you, me, or [boss/company] will be upset. Do we want to add drama and tension to our relationships?"
Need to be careful that you're not being the well-meaning villain in all of this. Reinforcing a social stigma of talking about salary problems with other people who may be having similar issues opens up a world where an awful lot of abuse can go unchecked, and even though you're quietly working behind the scenes to resolve it, it doesn't change that for several years those employees may have been making 40% below what they could have been earning.
If they had found out about it, and then decided to look for another better paying job, they could potentially be significantly further along in achieving their financial life goals compared to where they are now. Underpaying people isn't an entirely victimless scenario, and it might be a little bit paternalistic for you to encourage keeping them in the dark while you gradually sort it out.
Clarification: Half the developers salaries are more than the managing partners salaries today,when I started most the developers were making half of what the MP's salaries were.
Half the developers salaries are more than the managing partners salaries (although the managing partners get a bonus which then makes their annual income higher than anyone else in the company so long as the company does well).
When I tell the employees not to discuss salary I offer them a few things to say in case another coworker asks them. My first go to reply is "I consider my salary and finances to be private matters that I don't tend to share with others." or "We're coworkers, what good could possibly come from us talking about this? The only outcome is someone, you, me, or [boss/company] will be upset. Do we want to add drama and tension to our relationships?"