Payment route map
Use this sheet in lesson 12. Trace one real or planned payment. Count every cost, including the ones nobody writes down: travel, time, phone credit, an ID check that fails.
Task being paid for:
Price per unit, as set by the council: per
What triggers the payment
What has to be true before someone is paid? Who checks it? Can the worker see the result?
Route A
| Step | Who or what | Cost | Who pays the cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Funder sends | |||
| Exchange | |||
| Wallet or account | |||
| Phone or agent | |||
| Cash out | |||
| Travel to cash out | |||
| In the worker's hand |
Total cost on a payment of :
Route B
| Step | Who or what | Cost | Who pays the cost |
|---|---|---|---|
Total cost on a payment of :
For comparison: Bislig, Philippines, January 2025
Surveyors were paid 40 pesos per tree, about 5,000 pesos per survey. Route A: pesos converted to USDC, then a Decaf wallet, then cash at a MoneyGram counter after a 35 to 45 minute trip to town. Route B: straight to a GCash wallet, with a fee of 1 USDC (about 56 pesos) per transfer, and up to 70 pesos in total fees to get 1,000 pesos out as cash. When route B was offered to eleven people, two were interested and one tried it. In the end that person also chose cash.
Ask the people being paid
- Which route do they prefer, and why?
- What do they need the money to become: cash, phone credit, a bill paid, savings?
- When will you ask them again?
Data is Soil · GainForest · www.datasoil.org/handouts/payment-route-map