Is OP essentially trying to say, why should people work for minimum wage, when you can live life on benefits and have what is deemed to be a more prosperous life, as per various newspapers and television shows?
In which case, the logic is flawed. It's not about one demographic being better off than the other. In our house we solely get CB, DH works hard, gets an average wage, our life is comfortable. If DH worked for a lesser wage, life would still be comfortable. People with children on minimum wage, get a reasonable tax break, plus tax credits, which I believe takes your income up to a satisfactory level. Obviously there is, I believe a disparity in income between a group of workers on minimum wage, if one has one child, another has four. It would be reasonable to suggest your outgoings would reflect that, as more children means more outgoings.
What many are missing is what constitutes a good life. If you have unrealistic expectations then you'll feel hard done by. You don't need a lot of things that people measure success and quality of life by. Culture has changed so people can be very materialistic.
We won't go on holiday this year, as we didn't book quick enough, just as we didn't go away last year, only crazily priced places are left during the school holidays. Anything needed is saved for. A lot of the furniture and appliances are rather old, until they break they won't be replaced. As a family I personally put no bearing on my worth being ascribed by anything materialistic.
Happiness isn't a huge TV, with the whole Sky Package, brand new phones, designer clothes, designer anything. Or even clothes that are in fashion, or trendy, I dress how I dress, DH has his style preferences, DC get new clothes due to growing, but the eldest is pinching a lot of my vintage t-shirts. DD wears mainly pink, girly stuff, which can be found in charity shops, bundles from eBay or super markets. Food wise a shop is done monthly if that, stuff is bought in bulk, DH takes breakfast and dinner to work over going to the canteen.
We grew up the same, clothes were handed down, you made do with what you had, you ate what you were given, you had one car per family usually, you played games that cost nothing, the best things in life were usually free.
So if people stopped thinking that you need to achieve an ascribed status, with all jobs if working class you started at the bottom and worked up. If you were middle class maybe your family owned a business you'd work in, otherwise the same you start as a trainee and work up. Instead of the expectation of something higher than you were worth.
On the playground there might be parents that judge others, good for them, they can look at us how they wish, as long as the children are happy, we are happy, money has very little to do with it. That really needs drilling in to children of today. Even people who earn above average, if they follow the 'model of happiness' they'll be mortgaged to the max, with credit to buy all this stuff some perceive makes you successful. I'm glad we don't subscribe to such an ideology. You don't need a living room rammed with presents, that your children probably won't even touch, they write a Christmas list, you get what you can, the children are happy.
I don't expect everyone to think that this way of living is how it's done, but not having debt, loans, credit cards, makes life simpler. I've had similar arguments before, but even if poor you don't need to go to Brighthouse, what's wrong with second hand?
I will add being older means we have a lot of stuff collected over the years, mostly Christmas gifts of random kitchen stuff that's never used. Life was started out with the basics, distinguishing between want and need will take you a long way.