Assuming your premise regarding low salaries is correct (I have no idea), the choice between a small set of people making better money and a much larger group n

Assuming your premise regarding low salaries is correct (I have no idea), the choice between a small set of people making better money and a much larger group not dying is, morally speaking, fairly straightforward. But I suspect the reality is different. I can imagine a couple of reasons for low salaries: Big Pharma would like nothing more than pay its personnel decently, but they're barely breaking even. Alternatively, the ratio between PhDs and jobs available doesn't work in the favour of PhDs. In which case, Big Pharma making even more money would translate into additional mansions for C-level executives, not better salaries for PhDs. Which explanation do you feel is the most likely?