People who are underpaid and overpaid - add your own!

[Wade Lippman]

There's a local weather woman (she does have a meteorology degree) reputed to make $600,000/year. Her skill set is not THAT unique.

Let's assume your example is true.
If they could get someone to do the job equally well for $400,000 a year, don't you think they would? The station management must think she is worth $600,000 or they would get rid of her. Don't you think they have a better handle on her worth than you do?

Sofia Vergara gets $40M/year. Seems obscene to me, but if they could get away with paying her $30M/year, don't you think they would. You can spit at economics all you want, insisting your value system is superior, and economics will win out every time. Save the spit.

[Jim Koepke]

Originally Posted by Curt Harms
There's a local weather woman (she does have a meteorology degree) reputed to make $600,000/year. Her skill set is not THAT unique.

Is it the skill set or is it the number of viewers who tune in to see her weather segment?

I have seen many "managers" who are responsible for nothing and report to nobody. OVERPAID

I have also seen many workers who are dedicated to their jobs and will carry the whole team or shift. UNDERPAID

Many of our public employees, firefighters, police, teachers and others dedicated to a better society... UNDERPAID

Many of our public employees, clerks, records keepers and others just doing it for a paycheck... OVERPAID

Many elected to serve their constituents who only serve the lobbyists... OVERPAID

jtk

[Raymond Fries]

Servers in restaurants are waaay underpaid. Last I knew they made like $2.15 per hour. Then they have to tip out a percentage of their tips to others like say a bartender. Next time you dine out, please leave a really nice tip.

Harrison Ford visited a local restaurant here a few years ago and left a $4,000 tip. I wish I could do that!

Take Care.

[Peter Kelly]

The bulk of restaurant workers are usually grossly underpaid, particularly here in NYC. $65-$75k is the norm for an executive chef (20 years experience) at better restaurants.

I'd add hedge fund managers and lawyers to the massively over-compensated list.

[Jason Roehl]

Servers in restaurants are waaay underpaid. Last I knew they made like $2.15 per hour. Then they have to tip out a percentage of their tips to others like say a bartender. Next time you dine out, please leave a really nice tip.

This is a commonly held myth. The minimum wage for tipped servers is $2.13/hour. However, by wage law, if their tips don't make up the difference of federal minimum wage and that $2.13/hour, the restauranteur has to make up the difference to bring them up to the minimum wage: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs15.htm I'm not saying that's a good wage, though. And I do tip as generously (20%+) as I am able when the service is good. Closer to 10% if it's not (and obviously within the server's control).

Harrison Ford visited a local restaurant here a few years ago and left a $4,000 tip. I wish I could do that!

You and me both. Ford worked with his hands before he made it big. Obviously, he didn't forget. Kudos to him.

Just to put in a bit of defense for the shovel-leaners. I have a good friend who used to be a construction supervisor for the local WaterWorks. I watched him and his crew repair a few water main breaks. Often, he would be the one in the hole working while his most of his crew (other than the guy in the backhoe) stood around the rim of the hole watching. I said something to him about it one time, cracking wise. He got real serious and told me that they were watching for signs of collapse. He himself had saved one of his crew when they were both in a hole that started to collapse, pulling the guy out of the way of falling dirt and under/behind the bucket of the backhoe.

[Rod Sheridan]

Overpaid: Most CEOs and upper management
Underpaid: Those working for the above who aren't paid what they are worth because the above are in some kind of weird competition to become as rich as possible.

Overpaid: Road crew workers who lean on their shovels all day.
Underpaid: Road crew workers who use their shovels all day.

Underpaid: Electricians who work hot.
Overpaid: The foreman who told them to work it hot.

Not too Bright: Electricians who work hot when it's not a life support emergency

Even Less Bright: Foreman who tell workers to work hot when it's not a life support emergency.

There, fixed that for you Julie. :-)

Having had a father who survived a serious shock/arc flash incident, I find myself not doing hot work unless it's a life support emergency, except for times when you need to perform measurements or infra-red inspections.

Regards, Rod.

[Joe Kieve]

Underpaid: In addition to our military, police/firefighters, teachers, I think septic tank "cleaner outers" need a little more.

Overpaid: Congress...Will Rogers said back in the 30's, "we've got the best congress money can buy".

[Myk Rian]

Overpaid. Waayy overpaid: Wallstreet executives.

[Julie Moriarty]

Not too Bright: Electricians who work hot when it's not a life support emergency

Even Less Bright: Foreman who tell workers to work hot when it's not a life support emergency.

There, fixed that for you Julie. :-)

Having had a father who survived a serious shock/arc flash incident, I find myself not doing hot work unless it's a life support emergency, except for times when you need to perform measurements or infra-red inspections.

Regards, Rod.

My personal experience has been it's money and not life support that dictated those times we were asked to work hot. 120v is no big deal, but 480v is another story. That's usually the highest voltage journeyman wiremen ever have to work but, like you, I've seen what it can do.

[Rod Sheridan]

My personal experience has been it's money and not life support that dictated those times we were asked to work hot. 120v is no big deal, but 480v is another story. That's usually the highest voltage journeyman wiremen ever have to work but, like you, I've seen what it can do.

Agreed Julie, it often is a lack of understanding of the risks, and a reluctance to make changes to minimize them.........Most of our work is 600 volt.........Rod.

[Bert Kemp]

The men and women that go into battle for us and DIE for us Rank	<2 Years Experience	4 Years Experience	6 Years Experience
Private (E1)	$18,378**	—	—
Private (E2)	$20,602.80	$20,602.80	$20,602.80
Private First Class(E3)	$21,664.80	$24,418.80	$24,418.80
Specialist or Corporal (E4)	$23,994	$27,936	$29,127.60
Sergeant (E5)	$26,172	$30,661.20	$32,814
Staff Sergeant (E6)	$28,569.60	$34,171.20	$35,578.80

I won't argue that teachers are under paid but compared to the Military they do ok the lowest paid teachers in the US avg
$40K they don't live in a foxhole and eat MRE's

Agreed and would add perhaps the most underpaid of all here in the US: School teachers.

Erik

[Jim Creech]

Let's not forget all the additional "Perks" most of these grossly overpaid executives also get!

"All I want is ...less to do...more time to do it in, and more money for not getting it done!"

[Jim Becker]

underpaid...teachers, police/fire/public-safety, military, many hourly workers
overpaid...politicians, many CxO level (as compared to other workers in a firm)

[Erik Loza]

For many years, I worked in corporate retail. The company's shares would struggle, so they would lure in some big executive from another company, make a big press release: "This is the person who's going to turn us around. They bring all this experience, they're a game changer, blah, blah, blah...". Except that "turning things around" always seemed to consist exclusively of slashing payroll. No plans, no leadership, just gut payroll. A year or two would go by, the stocks would not turn around, and this executive would leave with all sorts of compensation and options. Then, coprporate would do the exact same thing all over again. We would all scratch our heads. "What did they really do except give us less hours to run the stores on?" It seemed like they were hiring damage managers, not leaders.

I don't have a fundamental problem with people being well-paid or perhaps even "over-paid" but don't like when executives come in with all sorts of salary and compensation to match some huge expectation, do nothing more than gut the work force, which is the simpleton's way to save money, then waltz back out the door with all that compensation still intact while hard-working people got laid off. Just my 2-cents, as always.

Erik

[Julie Moriarty]

Erik, when I was working on a big job in the mid 90's, at a government lab, my contact was an engineer who worked for the lab. We talked every day. One day, after the work talk was done, we were discussing how the contractor I was working for had been a victim of Boesky and Milken and were going to be closing their Chicago division because Boesky and Milken had raided their funds and they couldn't afford to operate offices across the country anymore. The engineer said something that stuck in my head, "Companies used to be run by engineers, the people who designed and built the products. Employees were treated fairly and made a decent wage. The company made money but they didn't make a killing. When the accountants took over, they made money by slashing wages and benefits and demanded more work from their employees. That's how the Decade of Greed was ushered in."

I've thought about what he said many times since then. I don't know how accurate his statement was but I do remember the time when employees were paid a living wage, got decent health care and even a pension, and there was a strong middle class. Of course, back then, there were not so many multi-millionaires and very few billionaires. It went from sharing the wealth to a cash grab.