Do you begrudge high earners?

[cheerscheerscheerstomeyeahcheers]

Do you actually understand what they do and why they earn so much?
Would you be actually willing to put in the time and effort yourself?

I see so much griping about people that earn a lot, but I also see a lot of ignorance about why they earn what they do.

In my field, I wouldn’t want to have the level of accountability, or manage the level of risk that comes with the base salary you’re talking about, OP. Not on your life.

No, I don't begrudge high earners in general. I do begrudge the ones who think only high earners 'put in the time and effort'. You are aware that lots of jobs are very demanding and very hard work, but not highly paid, right?

No, I don't begrudge them.

I do have issues with people who earn minimum wage and never stop moaning. When it is suggested they could go for a supervisor position to earn more money, they tell you it's 'too much hassle'.

I’m a high earner (£100k plus). Sometimes I work very long hours but I recognise lots of people who earn low and minimum wage can do long hours too. I’ve also worked hard to get academic qualifications and, with the support of my DH, maintained my career when our DC were young.

In my current role, I don’t necessarily earn the money day to day. But the buck always stops with me and I am the one that makes the big, complex decisions. Our service operates 365 days and if there is a truly urgent issue I’ll have to step in. So, although it doesn’t happen often, I’m never 100% of duty. Also, I’m very aware that the income and welfare of my staff is down to me. It’s a huge responsibility. I think that’s how I earn my salary.

Almost everyone who’s a high earner is paid for what they know, not what they do. And generally there is a limited number of people with the necessary skills, so that drives up salaries. Often the day to day job is not stressful…right up until the moment it is. How many people would have wanted to be the CEO of a service industry the day the country locked down…?

On the other hand, surgeons, who one might argue do a more useful job, are relatively speaking in greater supply and, on the whole, work for an employer (the NHS) who has a monopoly so there’s a much smaller demand driven component to their compensation. So while they might work ‘harder’ they’re not going to earn as much.

Median pay for FTSE 100 CEOs is now 109 times the average worker wage. In 1980 it was just 11 times the average.

This disproportionate increase of top vs bottom wages carries through at most high levels and it's not about begrudging it but about it being a bad thing.

No I don't begrudge high earners at all most I've met look about 10 years older then they actually are!
I find the spouses of high earners to be 1 of 2 types either salt of the earth or out of touch with reality and a bit snobby even though its not them who is earning it!
A stay at Gleneagles was also an eye opener to some extremely entitled behaviour sadly mostly from the women we saw. We had won the stay but the way we saw some guests act I felt very sorry for the staff.

Funny this was one of the things that came up here during the pandemic .That people on higher salaries working for big corporations were less valued to society than say a bus driver ,or waste control .They seemed to sit at home twisting their thumbs and realising of how little they were valued by society .
Public service workers are vey much valued by society .

Depends on the job. Consultants working on pioneering medical procedures, please crack on and I hope you are paid more. Shell/BP c-suite should be imprisoned without the possibility of parole.

Most people would be happy for others to be rewarded high wages for work that provides a net positive for the world. Very few high pay jobs do that though.

You can't profit from social inequality, environmental destruction, etc. and then cry about the world not being happy about your success.

I agree about seeing a lot of negativity toward high earners.

My DH spent years doing a difficult degree at university, years getting professional qualifications after uni, years working all hours under the sun. He effectively sacrificed his entire 20s to have a better life in the long term. He now earns anywhere from £200 - £350k per year. He makes more in some months than I could have made in a year which is one of the reasons I don't work anymore. My financial contribution was so insignificant in the grand scheme of things that my contribution in the home is actually far more valuable.

In contrast, I messed around at school, I got a job after my A Levels, I didn't achieve my full potential by attending university despite getting good grades which was a miracle in itself considering the skiving. I wanted to go out every weekend on the piss with my friends and see my bf. I did manage to buy my own home in my 20s due to an inheritance which was used as a deposit. I paid my mortgage on my own but I was never a high earner and never will be. Even now I could go to uni as I have the time and financial support of my DH but I just don't want to at 35. These were my poor choices and I can't blame anyone else for them.

I think the resentment is mainly for those who are born into wealth not the self made wealthy. I've always had a healthy respect for those who 'come good.'

Excellent and accurate post. Giving away half of everything my dh earns, paying hundreds of thousands in taxes annually just isn't cutting it for dh any more. He's created jobs and given so much but other than that, what's the incentive to stay?

I agree with this. Before having DS, DH earned close to £200k a year.

I was always far more interested in getting pissed, seeing my mates, having a laugh, etc. I never work outside my contracted hours and do the bare minimum that’s expected to the standard required.

DH, on the other hand, knuckled down at school, uni and all through his career. It always came first. He’d never dream of getting drunk on a work night when he was younger (doesn’t drink at all now), whereas my 20s and half of my 30s were spent working with a hangover.

No, I think good on them.

No, because I’m married to one. He’s an accountant and he said his job is the most boring job in the world. I’m a teacher so my job is vocation and not money driven. Obviously we both agree I am the harder worker and my job is more ‘important’ in the grand scheme of things (his words not mine) and it frustrates me that he earns 4x what I do but he makes the point that I do my job because I love it. NO ONE in their right mind would do his job if they weren’t rewarded for it somehow.

Begrudge is the wrong word.
I have worked with one person on that kind of money who totally deserved it. The rest, nope. They think they deserve it though.

I think most people on very high wages have no understanding of the level of responsibility that some much lower paid jobs have. Managing a children's home for example with multiple vulnerable children, and gangs who try and hang around outside to groom young people. Or social workers who can and are prosecuted if a child dies or is seriously injured because they did not do enough to protect them. In comparison to some of those jobs, the level of responsibility for a high earner in a corporate firm is not that high.

And from the people I have known, most do not get there because they have great skill levels. They get there because they have the networks. In fact the most successful one I ever knew was someone who was brilliant at networking, but did very little work, simply delegating everything including oversight to his brilliant underpaid female deputy. She was excellent at her job.

And I will never forget the very posh and very smartly dressed man brought in on a ridiculous high salary to bring about change management. He sounded brilliant at the first few meetings. And then it became clear he had not a clue what he was talking about and it was all style over substance.

@PotatoPudding I was never a high earner and would never have worked with a hangover. But then I worked with vulnerable children. Not easy middle class jobs where people seem to piss about and still get paid.

Be interesting to see how Mumsnet would judge the two of you if the sexes were reversed.

These were my poor choices and I can't blame anyone else for them.

but ultimately you are living a very comfortable life despite those choices, because you made a good choice of partner.

I've always been a low earner but DH is a high earner. All money in one pot so reason to begrudge him. He has specialist skills but doesn't work long hours or weekends, he's home for dinner at 5.30 in the week. He likes his job and the office conditions are very nice (free meals, free gym and casual dress). Never has to work away from home, and we live close enough to the office that he can pop back for assemblies and sports day, so he's very involved with family life.

No more comfortable life for me. DH gave all that up after having DS. He wanted to be around for him physically and mentally. He takes home about a third of what he used to and we’ve downsized the house and massively downgraded our lifestyle. We now have to watch every penny, but we get quality family time.

What upsets me is that most are from privileged backgrounds & were privately educated. Not all, I know and not their fault at all, I’d send my children without a second thought if I could, it’s just a cycle of wealth and shows our world is not fair.

Not most at all. I went to my local state high school. From my friendship group of seven, four are high earners. One had a little help but the rest all got their 100% on merit.

Nope.
I only begrudge them when they act like they’re the only ones who work hard. Plenty of much lower earning jobs like care worker or nurse or teacher work very hard - harder than me. I can recognise this, so super high earners should too!

Nope, state school educated as is most of the other high earners I work with.

I don’t think @BusyCM is saying they don’t, just pointing out that others who don’t earn as much equally work as hard.