You could say the same thing about $10 - the value of a $10 note to (eg.) a millionaire is a lot less than it is to most people. If the employee is hungry, then

You could say the same thing about $10 - the value of a $10 note to (eg.) a millionaire is a lot less than it is to most people. If the employee is hungry, then they'll value lunch more. For accounting purposes though, it's $10.