Merve Cura - 21

In many countries, a small number of people earn extremely high salaries. Some people believe that this is good for the country, but others think that governments should not allow salaries above a certain level.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Nowadays, most countries suffer from income imbalance among different types of professions in the society. That is to say, a minority of public gains more money than the dominant rest. The salaries of this minority are higher than those of the others who can accumulate the amount gained by them in a couple of years. Because of this injustice problem, many people claim that the salaries of this group must be reduced, and be fixed at a level while others put forward the idea that this inequality is beneficial for the country. I believe that inequality is never beneficial, but the solution requires various regulations, and reducing salaries is not one of them.

The opponents of salary inequality claim that the people themselves determine what their job will be and the amount of money they gain from that job is related to their efforts, their qualifications, and their working habits. Thus, if some people make money more than the rest of the country, it is because they work harder than others and they are collecting the harvest of their investments. Moreover, the glamorous lifestyle of the minority with high income can be fuel for others who gain less money to build motivation to work harder and as a result to be like them. This purpose can lead the way to new inventions, new businesses, and in long term to a country with a better economic prospectus.

On the other hand, it is essential not to forget that the opportunities to choose a job, to get proper education, and to start a business are not equal for all the citizens of a country. It is common knowledge that money pulls money. Even though rare exceptions exist, many rich people or people who work in prestigious jobs with high salaries actually come from families with similar backgrounds. At this point, "work hard, gain more." seems like a fairy tale to protect the rich minority from fair dividing of the total money in the country. The proponents of a fixed salary for high salary jobs put forward their claim because of these circumstances. But reducing one's deserved income is as unfair as not paying the one what they deserve. Thus, the main problem is not the amount of money that the rich people earn, but their way of making money.

In conclusion, it has long been argued whether income inequality is beneficial for the countries in long term, or there should be interventions to reduce the amount of money that people earn from high-income positions. I believe that it is unacceptable to consider inequality as an advantage even if it is considered a part of the development of a country. I also believe that there should be regulations about the incomes but not by reducing the higher ones but by supporting the lower ones.