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senecalast Monday at 3:20 PM1 replyview on HN

> If I'm creating 3 times as much value as my equivalent in 1970, why aren't I getting paid 3 times as much inflation-adjusted money, hmm?

Because that increase in productivity comes almost entirely from technology owned by your employer.

To look at it in a contrived example, let's take textiles. There is a textile factory employing weavers who weave fabric by hand, and the factory owners buys a new automated weaving machine that makes the weavers each 3 times more productive. The maker of the machine created the technology, and is paid for it, the owner of the factory made the investment to bring the technology, and profits from it.

This is basically exactly what has happened to modern productivity.


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com2kidlast Monday at 5:09 PM

Except in technology where the gains come from my personal investment in skills. I'm spending hours every week keeping up with the field of software engineering. I've been investing in learning my craft since I was 14 or so.

I'd argue the same goes for many types of digital creators, artists, video editors, animators, and so forth.

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