Résumé du livre
There is no good economic or moral rationale for the idea of “equal pay for all.” In terms of economics, such a proposal would destroy the incentive-producing and information-conveying role of prices in the labor market, leading to catastrophic misallocations of labor and dire consequences for human welfare. And morally, there is simply no good rationale for either (a) the idea that all persons ought to have an equal income, or that (b) that it would be the responsibility of employers to provide it. A more morally and economically sensible idea is the proposal that government provide people with an equal minimum income. Such an income would provide a safety net below which no one would be allowed to fall, but above which they would be permitted (and incentivized) to climb through their own efforts. An equal minimum income would guarantee sufficiency without guaranteeing equality, and would do so in a way that avoids the distorting effects on the labor market entailed in the proposal for equal pay.