As always,it depends. I guess by mentioning midwest,you go with a notion that it's not a hcol area. The unlimited vacation & sick time probably also means a pre

As always,it depends. I guess by mentioning midwest,you go with a notion that it's not a hcol area. The unlimited vacation & sick time probably also means a pretty decent white collar job. It's difficult to compare with Europe,as one unit, as it's as varied as the US is. There are quite a few countries in Europe, where I'd happily take whatever your the associates are making at your firm and I'd have amazing,high quality life with very little to worry about. Alternatively, if I go to London,or Zurich, most salaries would feel like pocket change. The other aspect,what in my opinion keeps tab on salaries in Europe, is the sheer volume of available quality candidates for jobs. There are tons of people with exceptional education. Not so long time ago, we used to have a running joke back home that why would anyone hire a cleaner without a masters degree?It also used to be a default option to only hire secretaries that only had double masters.