lost-and-searching-in-america:
Wage inequality is a new term I see popping up a lot lately, especially on those clever Occupy Wall Street signs that everyone is so in love with now. But let’s analyze this term for a moment and try and to get a grasp on what this statement references.
Wage. We all know what that is, it’s the money you make in exchange for a service you provided to either an employer or to the market place. Wages are determined on your job, your experience, your skill, your education, your tenure, and most importantly your work ethic. Some people are worth more to an employer because they have a higher education. Some are worth more because they have a certain skill. Others are worth more because of on the job experience or a reputation of hard work. Not everyone get’s paid the same wage because these factors matter. You wouldn’t pay a kid straight out of high school $150,000 per year to be the CEO of your electric company, nor would your electric company hire a CPA with no eletrical experience $45,000 per year to install transformers and power line. Make sense?
Now, onto “equality”. The word equality invokes justice, fairness, equal across the board no matter what differences. Equality is a wonderful concept when applied to things that people can not choose. For instance, a man has no say so in whether he is born black or white. therefore neither race should be considered a superior one, this is because neither man could work to obtain a position in the other race no matter what he did. Things like race, sexual orientation, hair color, ect. are natural things and therefore they should never be considered when determining a persons worth. However, a man’s work ethic is NOT something he is born with. It is something he has to develop and build up. If he refuses to do so than he becomes lazy. And why should a lazy man or woman be granted equal wages as a hard working man or woman?
The simple fact is that he shouldn’t. Natural law would state that man who works harder deserves more. Now many people will state that CEO’s of mega corporate company’s that make millions a year are not working nearly as hard as the guy who works for the county road crew. My response to that is this. The man on the county road crew works hard physically and deserves a decent living wage. But on the other hand, the road crew worker may not have even finished high school while the CEO finished high school, a BA program at a university, a masters at another university, worked as an unpaid intern for however long, and than worked his way up while carrying student loans and a family. So it’s easy to say that the man in the suit doesn’t work as hard, but that is narrow minded. Of course, I hate mega corporations and this is only based on a honest man reaching the top of a corporate ladder, I’m not talking about or justifying crooks or people who have cheated others for their job or wages.
The fact is, though. People have to work to make money. And they have to work really hard to make really good money. Whether it’s physical or educational, everyone has to work hard to get a high wage. If people are unwilling to go to school and study in a field that has real job potential than they have no right to whine for wage equality. If a person shows no drive or ambition, put’s worth as little effort as possible in his workplace, doesn’t strive to reach the next level than they have no right to whine for wage equality.
The very term “Wage Inequality” is preposterous. And so is the idea that everyone should be paid equal wage regardless of how hard they work, or their skills.
Remember the story of the Grasshopper and the Ant? The Ant worked hard all summer to save up for the winter while the Grasshopper did nothing. When winter came the Ant had all that he needed while the Grasshopper was pissed off and was left holding a picket sign at Occupy The Ant Hill that said “Wage Inequality!”
Respectfully, it's not that simple.
"The fact is, though. People have to work to make money. And they have to work really hard to make really good money. Whether it’s physical or educational, everyone has to work hard to get a high wage."
- Yes, I don't disagree with you here. You work hard, and you try to earn a higher wage as you progress through your career. However, hard work doesn't guarantee higher wage, so you can't simply state that hard work equals high wage. What you consider to be "hard work" might be something completely different to someone else. My grandfather worked in the fields picking cotton for 12-14 hours a day in 100 degree heat, but never made more than dollars a day when he came to this country seventy years ago. Is that not hard work?
"If people are unwilling to go to school and study in a field that has real job potential than they have no right to whine for wage equality."
- Unwilling or unable? There's a big difference. Some people can't study in a field that would grant them more money because of outside factors. Does that make them lazy? Sorry, but not everyone can afford to do such a thing without making major sacrifices, and what I mean by that is making a choice between food and fuel, between books and electricity. These are real choices. Unless you were born in a mildly advantageous situation, entering into higher education will cost you, and in some cases, cost you dearly because you have to make some very difficult decisions. It's not as easy as registering for courses and going to school. Making it seem like it is is disingenuous.
"If a person shows no drive or ambition, put’s worth as little effort as possible in his workplace, doesn’t strive to reach the next level than they have no right to whine for wage equality."
- Again, what do you qualify as no drive or ambition? What does that mean? Does it mean that the person working at a grocery store (or in your case, a road construction worker) for ten years has no drive or ambition? What if they are just as capable as their manager of doing their job, but just hasn't landed that promotion? May not be a CEO of a company, but they want to move up. Sometimes the circumstances keep them from it. People aren't asking for hand outs. Stop making it seem like they want the world on a silver platter. It's America. You have to work to get somewhere, but it's getting a whole lot tougher to make it. It's not something for nothing, and it's definitely not whining.
"The very term “Wage Inequality” is preposterous. And so is the idea that everyone should be paid equal wage regardless of how hard they work, or their skills."
- You're right. The term is preposterous, but for the wrong reason. It doesn't adequately describe what they're trying to say. They need a better message. No one is saying that everyone should be paid equally regardless of how "hard" they work... whatever you mean by that. I definitely don't advocate it, and I'm sure that many others feel the same way. Try living off of minimum wage. I dare you. Try it for a month. $7.25 an hour for 40 hours a week. You can double up on jobs if you want... work "harder" if you want to make something of yourself, or better yet, just to pay the bills. Live off of $5 a day. Live off of $1. Don't berate people for wanting to get out of the hole they're in. Many are in situations they didn't even start themselves. The only thing that people want is the prospect of a better life for their families, and they don't see it. They're reacting in their own way, "clever" sign or not.
I always find it funny how some people really have no clue what the minimum wage earner (or in other cases, people in poverty, or in low-income areas) goes through on a daily basis. It isn't just about the work they do, which is thankless, for the most part, but about the choices they have to make. If you want to blame their lot in life on them, fine, but don't just thumb your nose at them and say that they're whining because they want a handout. A lot goes into being in their situation. No one chooses that life. You wouldn't.
It isn't as simple as a child's fable... in most cases, they are the ant, they're just never able to get ahead.
