A Normal Day's Pay

The British are often accused by Americans of complaining about people who are successful. It is not because they are successful but because of how they do it and how they behave when they do. The most obvious example in recent years is 'fat cat pay'. It is also the subject most likely to bring the accusations. The Combined Code is supposed to curb the excesses of executive pay. HR was complicit in the heist. They are the people who sometimes say they have workers' interests at heart. A look at the median pay of the FTSE 100 executives shows what that means. Plato suggested that the highest paid should never get more than five times the lowest paid. In some cases it is 20 times more. The Bible suggests 'to each, his own', no class vindictiveness, same pay for everyone as agreed. We should also take into account the basic necessities of life, or CPI/RPI. The average earnings in the country in November 2007 was £457 per week and the National Minimum Wage intended to help poorly paid unskilled workers, at the other end of the scale, was £5.52 per hour in October 2007 rising to £5.73 in October 2008. Less than the rate of inflation. Some people do not get even that much. According to Government reports there are still many people being paid below minimum wage. The minimum wage is having no effect on them. It has effects on low wage markets and efficiency wages but to make a real impact on improving quality of life for low income families the minimum would have to be a lot higher. In some cases it does not help them out of the poverty trap.