Most people work hard to earn money and make a living. Earning capacity of a person depends on one’s qualification, experience, skills, health, geographical location, and demand for the work. Worldwide highest income per person is in Monaco whilst the least is in Afghanistan. Careers in the medical/healthcare sectors can be amongst the most highly paid secured jobs.
The average income is calculated by dividing gross national income by population. This is called per capita income of a country. This includes the income through corporate profit. The median income is different from average income. The median income is a number that falls in the middle of the country’s income distribution. In other words, half of the nation’s adults have disposable income higher than this number, while the other half have disposable income below this number. The highest median income is in Luxembourg at $52493 per year, and the first five countries in the list are in Europe. Median income is an indicator of relatively reduced gap between the rich and the poor.
In this blog, I focus on salaried employees who have a contract with the employer and workers who earn an hourly wage. Of course those who run a trade, industry or business, have the potential of making disproportionally high income. At the same time they can suffer huge losses as well. There are media/film/sports celebrities, employees in financial institutions, and top executives of corporate businesses earning much higher remuneration than those in the medical field. But their numbers are few and they will struggle to get the same remuneration, once their prime popularity period is over.
Salary of a particular job depends on the cost of training, the period of training, the risks involved, availability of the skilled workers, and the geographical location of the employment. In the UK, for a foreign student to become a medical doctor is about £160000 for tuition fee plus living expenses. For UK students it is much lower at £50000 plus living expenses. In the US, the expenses are much higher. Time taken to get from medical graduation to become a consultant varies from speciality to speciality, and takes as long as 7 to 10 years. Generally speaking, the time taken to become a fully trained physician is shorter in the US than in the UK. In the US, it takes 4 years to become a dermatologist, but in the UK it takes 9-13 years after medical qualification. The above factors have contributed in the increase in the remuneration for medically trained personnel.
We are aware that there are seasonal demand for certain jobs, and in certain conditions. Demand for building related workers increases when there is a lot of construction going on. So is for nurses where native people are shy of taking up nursing profession. High risk workers include deep sea divers, underwater welders, power line man, roofers, tree surgeons, high rising building window cleaners, sewer cleaners and so on. Their range of salary will reflect on hazardous nature of the work they do.
Geographical location is the most striking instance for huge difference in remuneration. That is why people of certain skills migrate to other countries, like Indian workers going to the Middle east. May I tell about my personal experience as a young doctor when moved from India to Nigeria soon after qualification. In 1970s, I was offered ten times the salary in India plus bonus, quarters, air travel, car and a steward for working in a community hospital in Nigeria. The geographical location in the same country also shows significant difference . For example in Cleveland, Ohio, US, medical residents, only earn $59000 while in New York residents get $71000.
Let me examine the difference in remuneration in the UK and the US for doctors. The average salary for junior doctors in UK is £28000, whilst in US it is £48920 ($68000). In the UK. For consultants with fellowship in specialities, the average salary in UK is £115000 and in US it is £211510 ($294000). In addition, U.K. consultants get an average £15000 as Clinical Excellence Award ( CEA).In most specialities, NHS consultants do private practice, and consultant plastic surgeons can get as much as 120% more through private work. In America, depending on the income generated by the work of a consultant, one can expect bonus. Although the remuneration is generally high in America, there are expenses like malpractice insurance to be deducted.
Minimum wage per hour is an important indicator of a country’s policy towards social well being, and the regulations on minimum wage will suppress the tendency for exploitation. It is highest in Australia at £10.40 ($14.40), in America it is £8.12 ($11.28) and in the UK it is £8.72 ( $12.12). In America, although there is a law on federal minimum wage, states do not enforce it. If that is not enough, American laws allow employers to have contract with employees on piecemeal work. Through competitive tendering this piecemeal work contract further depresses per hour wage pushing people into poverty. This sort of employment practice is starkly seen in poor countries like Bangladesh. This piecemeal work contract also helps employers not to pay other perks like sickness leave ,holiday pay and redundancy payment. Employers of such industries, lobby senators and congressmen to retain the inhuman system.
Recently in the UK, there was a supreme court verdict, not to treat Uber taxi drivers as contractors, but as employees. In UK, the employer has to pay national insurance at 13.8% on the salary or wage of an employee. The consensus is that ‘work culture’ is better in America than Europe, and in the EU countries, employees work fewer hours per week than in America.
Those who have been to America, might have noticed the ‘tipping’ culture for most services. After a meal, hair cut, or a taxi drive, one is expected to tip between18-20% of the total bill. In fact employers in those services avoid increasing the turn over and sales tax by pushing customers into the glorified practice of ‘tipping’. Even if you do not like the service, you are pressurised to tip so as to avoid unpleasant exchange of words after a taxi drive or a hair cut.
I have discussed different aspects of salary and wages in some parts of the world. Salary and wages essentially evolved from the natural process of supply and demand. However, governments have to play a significant role to avoid exploitation of workers by the mighty corporate employers. Governments of certain developed countries still have not enshrined in law the benefits due to employees. For example, federal laws in America do not stipulate maternity pay, sick pay and holiday pay, but some employers give them as a perk. Therefore the outlook of countries as well as people should change for a fair conditions of employment.
Dr.C.J.George
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