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Dear John,
The oligarchy is doing a number on us all.
Hidden within our economic system is an insidious idea that distorts the self-image of workers and executives alike. It causes the underpaid to undervalue themselves, and the richly overcompensated to overestimate their own value.
You’ve probably heard it stated as “you’re paid what you’re worth.” Don’t believe it.
Check out this week’s video to see how this game of blame-the-victim holds people down, and rewards those lucky enough to come out on “top.” It’s not easy to opt out of this game, but to improve the balance of wealth and power, the true value of work must be recognized.
According to the idea that everyone is paid exactly what they are “worth,” the CEO of McDonald’s is worth one thousand times as much as an entry level worker at the fast food giant. If workers were worth more, they’d be paid more, goes the thinking.
This attitude is so deeply ingrained in the public consciousness that many who earn very little assume it’s their own fault that they don’t earn more. What’s worse, is the assumption that since that’s how the “free market” works, there’s nothing to be done about it.
Rubbish! As our video explains, many sleights of hand have conspired to create this illusion -- and to justify the concentration of ever-increasing wealth in the hands of fewer people. Policies like the demise of antitrust enforcement and attacks on labor unions have given corporations unlimited power to set prices and provide unprecedented CEO compensation.
The reality is there’s no justification for today’s extraordinary concentration of wealth at the very top. Or for how little people are paid at the bottom. Rather, the “paid what you’re worth” myth is a cruelly effective way to put the blame on workers for not getting ahead -- while giving the rich and powerful cover to rig the game for themselves.
Let’s provide the counter-narrative to this dangerous idea. Watch our new video, then share it with friends.
Thanks for helping to build a world in which each worker sees the value of their contributions reflected in their compensation and their quality of life.
Robert Reich
Inequality Media
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