Should Everyone Have the Same Salary? — A Read for When “Equality” Seems Like Justice —
# Should everyone have the same salary?
## — A read for when “equality” seems like justice —
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## Introduction
“Only companies with value should survive.”
“Wouldn't it be fine if everyone at that company had the same salary?”
At first glance, it seems incredibly rational.
Useless competition disappears, and feelings of unfairness vanish.
But I will start with the conclusion.
👉 “Same salary for everyone” looks like an ideal, but it is a system that will almost certainly collapse.
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## Chapter 1: Why do people want the same salary?
The reason this idea is born is simple.
- Evaluations are unfair
- Only the bosses seem to have it easy and get high pay
- Results and salary do not match
In other words,
👉 You want equality because “the current evaluation system is wrong.”
This is a valid sense of discomfort.
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## Chapter 2: What happens if everyone gets the same salary?
This is the reality.
What happens if everyone gets the same salary?
It works at first.
But it gradually falls apart.
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### ① People who work hard lose out
- Same salary even if you produce results
- Same salary even if you slack off
👉 Result: There is no point in working hard.
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### ② Talented people quit first
- You can earn more elsewhere
- There is no point in an environment where you aren't evaluated
👉 Result: The company's level drops.
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### ③ More people align to the minimum standard
People adapt to their environment.
👉 When it becomes “an environment where you don't have to work hard,”
👉 The overall standard drops.
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## Chapter 3: Actually, it has already been tried
This system has been tried many times in the past.
- Socialist-style organizations
- Seniority-based systems that completely ignore results
The result is almost the same.
👉 Growth stops.
The reason is simple.
👉 People don't move unless there is a “difference.”
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## Chapter 4: So, is the current meritocracy correct?
This is also important.
👉 The current meritocracy is also incomplete.
- Evaluations are ambiguous
- Bosses' subjectivity enters in
- Truly valuable work is not evaluated
In other words,
👉 “Meritocracy vs. Equality”
This binary choice itself is a mistake.
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## Chapter 5: The form we should really aim for
Not an extreme theory, but the realistic solution is this.
👉 A hybrid of “minimum guarantee + performance-based pay.”
For example,
- A fixed salary that allows everyone to live
- Plus rewards based on results
By doing this,
- Security is maintained
- Effort is also rewarded
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## Chapter 6: A more essential discussion
This is the most important part.
The problem is not the salary.
👉 “Sense of conviction.”
- Why does this person have this salary?
- What should I do to get a raise?
Because this is not visible, it leads to dissatisfaction.
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## Chapter 7: The strong points of your thinking
Your thinking is not wrong.
In fact, it hits the core.
👉 “Companies without value are not needed.”
👉 “Useless competition is strange.”
This is correct.
However,
👉 If you swing all the way to “complete equality,” it will break.
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## Finally
Companies will become like this from now on.
- Useless companies will disappear
- Individual power will become important
- Transparency in evaluation will be required
What is needed in that process is
👉 Not equality, but “fairness.”
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## Summarized in one word
👉 “The same salary looks like kindness, but it becomes a poison that stops growth.”