Who Has True Value to Society

DailyMail.co.uk:

How bankers destroy £7 for every £1 they create: Hospital cleaners are more valuable to society, say researchers

By Lucy Ballinger
Last updated at 7:54 AM on 14th December 2009

Bankers may be good at making money for themselves - and sometimes for their banks - but they are a drain on society, a study has found.

It says they effectively take £7 from the rest of us for every £1 they create.

Lowly-paid employees such as hospital cleaners and waste recycling workers are far more valuable according to the New Economics Foundation thinktank.

BBC:

Cleaners 'worth more to society' than bankers - study

By Martin Shankleman,
Employment correspondent, BBC News

Undervalued: Hospital cleaners are more valuable to us than bankers, a new study claims

It rated different jobs on how much they help or hinder society through the social, economic and environmental effects of the work.

The researchers said the traditional view of bankers creating wealth which trickles down to others is no longer correct.

Instead, the actions of high-earning investment bankers have had 'damaging social effects'.

A total of six different jobs were analysed to assess their overall value. These are the study's main findings:

• The elite banker

"Rather than being wealth creators bankers are being handsomely rewarded for bringing the global financial system to the brink of collapse

Paid between £500,000 and £80m a year, leading bankers destroy £7 of value for every pound they generate".

• Childcare workers

"Both for families and society as a whole, looking after children could not be more important. As well as providing a valuable service for families, they release earnings potential by allowing parents to continue working. For every pound they are paid they generate up to £9.50 worth of benefits to society."

• Hospital cleaners

"Play a vital role in the workings of healthcare facilities. They not only clean hospitals and maintain hygiene standards but also contribute to wider health outcomes. For every pound paid, over £10 in social value is created."

• Advertising executives

The industry "encourages high spending and indebtedness. It can create insatiable aspirations, fuelling feelings of dissatisfaction, inadequacy and stress. For a salary of between £50,000 and £12m top advertising executives destroy £11 of value for every pound in value they generate".

• Tax accountants

"Every pound that a tax accountant saves a client is a pound which otherwise would have gone to HM Revenue. For a salary of between £75,000 and £200,000, tax accountants destroy £47 in value, for every pound they generate."

• Waste recycling workers

"Do a range of different jobs that relate to processing and preventing waste and promoting recycling. Carbon emissions are significantly reduced. There is also a value in reusing goods. For every pound of value spent on wages, £12 of value is generated for society."

The research also makes a variety of policy recommendations to align pay more closely with the value of work.

These include establishing a high pay commission, building social and environmental value into prices, and introducing more progressive taxation.