I agree that it sounds ludicrous to claim that one can be 'lower class' at $200k/year, however, I think there's a charitable way to read this position. Perhaps

I agree that it sounds ludicrous to claim that one can be 'lower class' at $200k/year, however, I think there's a charitable way to read this position. Perhaps their point is that autonomy is a better indicator of class than salary. Just like 'stupid is as stupid does,' 'class is as class does.' Being able to afford your own office means nothing if you can't actually use it because you spend 8-10 hours a day trapped in an environment that you find degrading. The barrier to class mobility in this case is mental. The engineer has traded autonomy for cash. My own opinion is that one becomes upper class when they can choose not to work. If your living expenses are $20k/year and you make that from returns on passive investments, congratulations, you're a part of the leisure class. If your expenses are $190k/year and you earn a salary of $200k/year you're a part of the lower/precariat class.