(c) Occupations differ in degree of social esteem or dises teem attached to them, and this is to most men an important element of psychic income (positive or negative) in weighing the net rewards of various callings. The measure of social esteem attached to any occupation is no doubt the result of popular judgment as to the quality of persons who usually follow that occupation. If the ministry, some kinds of teach ing, the learned professions generally, social service, banking, music, and art rank high in social esteem, it is because in the long run and on the average the public admires the kind of persons (morally and intellectually) who succeed in such work. But the judgment of an occupation becomes some what conventionalized, and often those who are lacking in the full measure of the qualities hope by entering the occupation to shine by reflected glory. In turn, it is in the power of any individual in our democratic society to change appreci ably the estimate of an occupation in a community by his standard of achievement and of character.
The average pecuniary or material rewards of an occupation are likely to be less in proportion as it enjoys high social esteem (as compared with occupations requiring the same grade of ability). On the contrary, if the public sentiment against an occupation is strong, those who follow it are often able to get a much larger reward than they could in another calling, as for example, gamblers, a certain type of criminal lawyers, and, in some neighborhoods, saloon keepers and bartenders.
§ 7. Costs and deductions from nominal labor-incomes. (a) The difficulties of preparation for the pursuit of various oc cupations are very unequal (in themselves, quite apart from the differences in natural fitness as among individuals). Partly the inequality lies in the strenuousness of application required of the learner, partly in the length of time before the preparation is finished, partly in the cost incurred for support, for tools and materials, and for instruction. The greater these difficulties the greater the beginner's discour agement from choosing this as compared with other occupa tions. Hence, unless there are enough other offsetting advan tages, the occupation with the high cost of preparation must be more highly rewarded, or nobody would choose these oc cupations; in other words, the expected labor-incomes' (in a But this does not mean that, other things being equal, the difference between the labor-incomes of two occupations must exactly equal the difference in costs of preparation for the two occupations; for the costs are present or in the near future, and the larger labor-incomes are in the more or less distant future, till the end of the probable working life. Hence the problem of time-value enters. The future in comes have a smaller (discounted) value at the present. In many work ing-men's families the difficulty of meeting present costs of preparation is so great that a large increase of wages or salary is insufficient to induce the beginner to make the sacrifice. (See above ch. 17, secs. 4, 12,
on the importance of preparation.) The rate of time-preference in such families is extremely high. The problem here is in nature that of the active investment of capital (see Part V) and involves a large element of uncertainty. Often the expenses of industrial education are returned many fold in the form of larger labor-incomes to the indi vidual, but in some cases the expense is "thrown away" because of the incapacity or of the moral weakness of the learner.
material form or as money-wages) must have a value enough higher to offset at the moment of choice the higher cost of preparation.
(b) The clearly apparent rewards of various occupations are often quite different from the real rewards, judged even in material terms (the amounts of goods received). Partly this is due to special costs required in some cases, such as pro viding tools (carpenters), wearing better clothes (salesmen and saleswomen), which costs are not entirely offset by social esteem ; partly it is due to living in a more expensive neigh borhood in one case than in another, as a condition of getting the higher income. For example, the higher wages in the Northern States as compared with the Southern, are in part offset by the need of more clothing and fuel, and by higher costs of house rents and food. In general the cost-of-living in the country districts is less than in cities, varying roughly with the size, and real wages in all these cases are much nearer equality than they appear to be. If this were not so, migration would quickly bring about a closer agreement.
§ 8. The long-time and ultimate rewards of labor. (a) Occupations differ on the average in danger to life and limb, and to health, as do also particular establishments in the same occupations, because of differences in lighting, ventilation, dust, fumes, machinery, and methods of safeguarding the workers. Quite apart from the question of agreeableness (treated above, section 6) there are differences in the expec tation of income because of medical and other expenses and loss of time from accidents and sickness. This expectation of loss should be, and doubtless is to some degree, offset by a higher wage in a more hazardous occupation, to induce any individual (within the range of his possible choice) to choose it rather than a safe occupation. But it is questionable whether this difference in money-rewards comes anywhere near equaling the chance of loss and danger expressed in money-terms. The reward is definite and present, whereas the danger is distant and vaguely felt. The more needy and improvident the worker the less he can or will estimate the danger and the more relatively (because of his high rate of time-preference) will he value a slight increase in present reward.