Why Contributionism?

What can it actually do for me?

There’s a lot going on right now. Environmental concerns, political corruption, tax rates, grocery prices, housing insecurity, medical bills, eroding social values - and the list goes on. At first glance it can feel a bit overwhelming.

The good news is, most of these issues are really just symptoms of the same problem: the pursuit of limitless profits at any cost. By dealing with this core issue, the rest of the list will begin to improve naturally - and that’s just what Contributionism seeks to do.

The Contributionist approach is like that of a doctor, removing a splinter to allow the wound to heal properly. By reforming pay and investment, Contributionism helps the rest of our symptoms to heal - all while still motivating work and innovation.

Let’s take a look at a few examples. Use the left and right arrows below to scroll and see how different problems are tied to the pursuit of profits, and how Contributionist policy can help.

As a reminder, the driving principles of Contributionism are:

  1. Pay ratios - The CEO of a company cannot earn more than 10x in an hour what their average entry level employees do.

  2. Return on Investment (ROI) caps - Investors are automatically “bought out” at a maximum of 300% ROI. Their shares go back to the company, allowing more profits to go to workers and company development.

  3. Profit sharing - If there are still investors being paid out, profits are split between the investors, the company, and the workers. Once investors are paid out, all profits are split between the company and the workers. There are more details about this split on the “What” page.

Remember, the “what” page goes more into detail on exactly how Contributionism works. If you have questions, you’ll likely find answers there.

A document titled 'Corruption' discussing causes and solutions, with sections 'The Cause' and 'The Fix' including text about influence of corporations, campaign finance, and suggestions for reducing corruption.
A text-based article titled 'Truth and fact' discussing the influence of manipulation and disinformation in politics and business, and proposing solutions like peer-reviewed studies to improve transparency.
A printed document discussing issues of corporate fines, justice, and accountability, titled "Justice" and divided into sections "The Cause" and "The Fix."
A page with the title "Environment" and sections discussing "The Cause" and "The Fix" with decorative borders.
A document discussing the importance of community support and local businesses, emphasizing the flow of money within a town and strategies for community strengthening.
Article titled 'Groceries, Housing, Healthcare, and Crime' discussing economic issues and proposed solutions.
A digital article discussing AI unemployment, its causes, and potential solutions, highlighting issues with automation, grocery store checkout lines, and proposing universal basic income as a tax on automation.
A text-based page titled 'Values' discussing societal morals, wealth, and consumerism, with sections 'The Cause' and 'The Fix'. It emphasizes the erosion of values, the importance of personal worth over monetary status, and fair compensation for work

If you wish to learn more about any of these areas, consider buying “The Contributionist Compromise” on the shop page.

One last thing before we move on.

I want to take a harder look at something that has become a big focal point lately - and which is being used to manipulate people into voting against their own interests. I’m talkin’ ‘bout…

A text-based article titled "Taxes" discussing causes of low tax revenue, the importance of fair taxation, and solutions like taxing workers fairly to alleviate financial hardship.

These nine problem areas - and more - are like the tentacles of a kraken, holding our nation and threatening to drag it under. We can chop at tentacles all day long, but until we deal with the head, the ship will remain in peril. Movements in the past have tried to kill this kraken, and they have failed…

…so what if we tried to tame it?

This is what Contributionism seeks to do.

An illustration of a giant kraken with its tentacles wrapped around a sailing ship, reaching out of turbulent waters, with mountains and a few birds in the background.

Why is this a fair solution?

Let’s discuss why - from a philosophical and ethical perspective - it’s fair to demand that employees receive better compensation.

Where does pay come from? The company, yes, but how does the company afford it? They use the money they make selling products. For example: a company makes and sells washing machines, then uses the money for wages, materials, upgrades, and operating costs. Any money left over is profit. The washing machines they sell aren’t being produced by the managers. They aren’t being produced by the executives. They certainly aren’t being produced by the investors. They’re being made by the workers.

Yes, CEOs, managers, marketers, and support roles can streamline production and boost sales - but without the washing machines being made, the company can no longer function. The efforts of the workers are what create the revenue to pay wages, buy machinery, stock materials, and take home profits.

In spite of this, in modern business, company owners have positioned themselves as the middle man. They sell the products the workers make, then dole out a small portion of the proceeds in wages. The workers - who have been convinced that they don’t deserve to see more - simply accept what they’re given, with a smile on their face. These workers aren’t even told how much money their work is generating each day - they’re just given their paycheck and told to be thankful.

Instead of the working class being recognized as the ones who make the company work, they’re treated as an unfortunate expense - something to be reduced or removed altogether.

Contributionism: respecting the value of workers’ time.

Ethically, Contributionism is based on two simple principles:

  1. One hour is the same length for every person, and everyone has twenty-four hours in their day.

  2. If there are two people with similar training and physical fitness, one cannot accomplish ten times as much as the other in the same amount of time.

Number one is pretty straightforward. Every person has one type of resource in common: time. Regardless of class, race, background, or beliefs, each person has the exact same number of hours in each day. These hours are the most precious resource that we have—because one day, each of us will run out of them. In the meantime, they can be spent working, pursuing passions, making memories, and otherwise sucking the marrow from this limited life of ours. That’s it for number one. Easy peasy.

If you’re stuck on number two, imagine that two able-bodied men are given the task of loading bricks into trucks by hand. If both people put in effort, and it takes one person an hour to load his truck - would it be possible for the other to load his truck in six minutes? Of course not - unless he uses a machine, in which case it’s the machine that makes the difference.

Ultimately, if two people are given the same task, resources, and time limit, one person cannot accomplish ten times as much as another person. Whether it’s digging a hole, writing emails, or making coffee — one person would have difficulty doing three times as much as the other, let alone ten times as much.

This is an important reality that we need to understand. Business tycoons are “successful” not because they can work harder - but because they’ve positioned themselves at the head of a huge network of individuals who are all giving their time and energy to facilitate the company’s success. When someone employs 100 workers, each working 8 hour days, that person effectively gets an extra 800 hours a day. That is the secret to their success.

And that’s it.

If you’re onboard with these two simple concepts, the ethics of Contributionism will really start to make sense. Keeping that in mind…

According to the Economic Policy Institute, the CEO-to-worker compensation ratio was at 344 to 1 in 2022. Remembering the two points we just discussed, Contributionism asks: “How can a CEO claim that their hour is worth 344 times more than their entry-level employees’ hour?” They can’t be doing hundreds of times more work in that hour. Any decision that makes the company money is just a direction to others — who then do the actual work. Maybe this does deserve some extra compensation — I’m not debating the value of oversight and direction. But a 30 times ratio is extortionate, much less hundreds of times. This is why Contributionism proposes a cap at a 10 to 1 ratio.

Let’s take a moment to discuss why this is fair.

Nowadays, we throw around massive numbers so much that they’ve lost all meaning. We know that in 2022 the average American CEO made 344 times more than an entry-level employee, but we don’t truly appreciate the scope and excess of that number. Contributionism proposes a 10 to 1 pay ratio, so let’s take a quick second to appreciate what the path to “just” ten times income looks like in more concrete terms.

Let’s say that you’re paying an entry-level employee enough that they can buy a modest home and used car, take care of their bills, pay their medical expenses, go out to eat once a week, and go on a one-week vacation each year.

If you’re making…

  • You own a nice, spacious house, drive a new car, eat at a nice restaurant each week, and go on two different vacations each year.

  • You own a nice, spacious home as well as a modest vacation home. You drive a new car and go to a fancy restaurant each week. You go on two vacations a year and put a quarter of your employee’s annual salary into your savings account each year.

  • You own what your employee would call a mansion. You own a vacation home as well and drive a new luxury car. You go out to eat whenever you please, and you go on two vacations a year. You also put your entry-level employee’s annual salary into your savings each year.

  • All of 5x, but you also have a full-time housekeeper and a full time personal assistant/driver, each paid the salary of your entry level employee. You also put double your entry-level employee’s salary into your savings each year.

  • You live in a mansion with a second, more modest home in another city. You also have a vacation home on a lake somewhere. You drive a fancy new car and go out to eat or drink whenever you like. You don’t worry about basic living expenses or regular healthcare bills. You go on two vacations a year that are luxurious compared to your employee’s vacation, and you put twice your employee’s annual salary into your savings each year. You have a full-time assistant/driver and a full-time housekeeper for your mansion who each make your entry-level employee’s annual salary.

Now, while money doesn’t buy happiness, it does translate to security and quality of life. To say, “I deserve ten times more pay than you” to an employee is to tell them “I deserve a quality of life ten times greater than yours because my time is ten times more valuable than yours.”

Consider how you would feel if someone were to say this to your face. If someone told you that your time — the moments that make up your life — is one-tenth as valuable as theirs. Really take a minute and consider that. This may seem like an extreme statement, but it reflects the mindset of upper management across the country and across the globe.

In fact, it’s a very conservative statement. Remember, the average ratio of CEO to worker compensation is 344 to 1, not 10 to 1. And also remember, it’s like this all the way down the ladder. If the CEO makes 344 times what you do, the next three beneath them likely make 300 times your pay. And the next ten down likely make 200 times your pay. And so on down the ladder, until we get to you — working a full, honest day for peanuts.

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