Compensation has almost nothing to do with how critical or important (lorry driver) your job is to the functioning of society, or how noble it is, or even how s

Compensation has almost nothing to do with how critical or important (lorry driver) your job is to the functioning of society, or how noble it is, or even how skilled you are. All that matters is the balance between supply and demand. Lorry drivers are paid shit because, despite the pressure and bad conditions, they're relatively easy to train up (sure it takes time, so this isn't helping right now), there are plenty of people willing to put up with shit conditions for a few years at a time (always fresh supply), and most of them are hauling shit around for retail consumption which has low profit argins. Software developers at investment banks (for example) are paid well because there's huge demand, supply of good developers with the right domain knowledge is short, and they work in a lucrative industry.