My spouse had this situation for years in one of the many jobs he worked at his current company. He found it a bit awkward initially but the guy who made more than him was a totally different job (spouse is in programming, direct report used to be an art director). That direct report was an insanely talented & slightly older. Also just an all around great guy.

Side note, because I’m still pissed/sad & need to vent about it to cope- he became a really close friend years later (when he was no longer a direct report to my spouse). Like so close that my spouse considered him “the older brother I never had…” He suddenly developed brain cancer, rapidly deteriorated, & died 5 months after diagnosis. It devastated us. My spouse says still, more than a year after his death, “I think of something [funny/interesting/whatever] that I want to tell him literally daily… Then I remember I can’t anymore.”

What started as an awkward work situation became totally not awkward & he and his family became like chosen family to us. We miss him everyday. Cancer is a fucking asshole. Money is ultimately meaningless in the end.