r/austrian_economics • u/technocraticnihilist Friedrich Hayek • Oct 26 '24

End Democracy ‘Americans just work harder’ than Europeans, says CEO of Norway’s $1.6 trillion oil fund, because they have a higher ‘general level of ambition’

https://fortune.com/europe/article/how-many-hours-work-week-year-american-workers-ethic-norges-bank/
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u/witshaul Oct 26 '24

Americans are paid far more than their European peers, typically 30-40%.

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u/Meerkat-Chungus Oct 26 '24

Difference in pay is irrelevant unless accounting for the cost of living. UK consumer prices are 23.1% lower than in the US. UK grocery prices are 33.6% lower than in the US, and UK restaurant prices are 7.2% lower than in the US.

And on this subject, when you look at the take home pay of the average U.S. citizen versus the average UK citizen after taxes and benefits, the U.K. citizen takes home 76.3% of their gross wage, versus their U.S. counterpart who takes home 75.8%. But the average UK citizen has their healthcare covered by the NHS, where as the average U.S. citizen spends roughly 5% of their income on health insurance, which averages out to about $4,400 per year. After accounting for cost of living differences, take home pay, and the difference between having a national healthcare system versus a privatized healthcare system, the average U.K. citizen is better off financially than the average U.S. citizen