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0 points9rx2mo ago0 comments

> This is a really concerning perspective: people were paid what they were worth.

The parent comment doesn't discount that, only pointing out that "what they were worth" was inflated due to a speculative environment. Wherein lies your concern?

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5 comments · 2 top-level

SirensOfTitan2mo ago· 2 in thread

I think calling it inflated is to play to a narrative that labor was overvalued broadly in tech.

Salaries across industries in the US have remained flat since the 1970s. Calling the one sector that can provide access a middle class lifestyle inflated s to play into a narrative capital is eager to tell, even if OP didn't intend that.

9rxOP2mo ago

> Salaries across industries in the US have remained flat since the 1970s

What do you mean? The real (meaning adjusted for inflation) hourly wage in the US has increased by around 20% since 1970.

What has changed since the 1970s is that wages are no longer coupled to productivity. Perhaps that is what you are thinking of? But that should be an obvious truism for anyone in tech. We create the very things that cause that to be the case!

keybored2mo ago

> We create the very things that cause that to be the case!

What happened in the 1970’s was the NeoLiberal shift and wasn’t caused by software.

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lotsofpulp2mo ago· 1 in thread

That prices change from one point in time to another is a trivial fact.

“Inflated due to a speculative environment” is not an accurate way to frame labor prices that held for many years. At that point, the prices were simply high due to high demand relative to supply (compared to other types of labor).

9rxOP2mo ago

> At that point, the prices were simply high due to high demand relative to supply

That goes without saying. The investigation here is into demand. Which was said to be overinflated due to speculation. As noted, many of the companies hiring the developers did not have viable businesses.

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