> Why do they rely on intrinsic motivations? The biggest problem is merit pay is politically impossible. Imagine paying a hotshot developer $300k to introduce

> Why do they rely on intrinsic motivations? The biggest problem is merit pay is politically impossible. Imagine paying a hotshot developer $300k to introduce a new LMS for a school district. That very well might be cheaper than hiring a consulting firm and paying a team of developers $85k. But there would be howls about taxpayer money being wasted on such a highly paid individual. The public only tolerates raises based on seniority because absent some tragedy everyone gets old, so everyone can imagine themselves in the public workers' shoes. This in turn attracts workers who bank on seniority rather than merit for pay increases, creating a culture of mediocrity and tall poppy attitudes. The private sector is shielded from such criticism by the magical "just don't patronize them" argument (when in fact many businesses are monopolistic and essential), and frankly because the public is ignorant of how well-paid certain individuals are within firms. Not arguing against high merit pay, as it can lead to the most efficient outcome, but boy oh boy is it unpopular with a lot of people who never fall into the highly paid bucket.