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This implies that janitor is an inherently inferior job that deserves lower pay. It might be true, but in my opinion an average janitor is more beneficial to so
by baursak 9y ago
This implies that janitor is an inherently inferior job that deserves lower pay. It might be true, but in my opinion an average janitor is more beneficial to society than an average programmer.
More to the point though, what happens when a janitor learns to code and gets a coding job? You still need a janitor!
- losteric 9y agoDirect vs indirect utility. Janitors are directly beneficial to a small number of people. The typical Google engineering is indirectly and marginally beneficial to millions.
- amigoingtodie 9y agoIs that what we tell ourselves, "I'm making a difference"?
- losteric 9y agoIt might not be positive, but we are making a difference
- amigoingtodie 9y agoTrue.
- ENGNR 9y agoThe janitor's salary goes up, and the incentive to automate increases. It's all win really assuming knowledge work is more enjoyable than being a janitor
- synicalx 9y ago> More to the point though, what happens when a janitor learns to code and gets a coding job? You still need a janitor! That is a good point, but I think it comes down to the barrier to entry - it's easier to become a janitor than it is to become a programmer so one could probably assume there's always going to be a steady stream of people who are willing to do janitorial work. > This implies that janitor is an inherently inferior job that deserves lower pay It does unfortunately. Given some of the awful stuff janitors have to deal I believe they're deserving of higher pay, but unfortunately the job market doesn't agree with me on that.