Over the years, I have developed a love for traveling. Like most people, you can blame social media for it but since I do not have a lot of money, I generally plan my trip for months before I book a flight.
In most cases, I end up staying at hostels, eating street food, and mixing up with locals, so learning about culture and languages has become a necessity. On my trip to Asia, I noticed something very strange; the regions better in economics and tech were facing a cost of living crisis. On the contrary, less developed regions have a stronger family system and above average lifestyle.
This is a weird trend but most people think tech and lifestyle are two variables that are not related. Within a textbook, we generally relate tech advancements to improving the quality of life. In real life, this textbook example looks like a myth.
So on my next trip; I started asking the locals about it. Here is what I learned and how this issue can be curbed.
Booming Economies Have High Cost Of Living
Look at some of the most tech-advanced cities and then look at the housing prices and cost of living in the same region. From the San Francisco Bay Area to Hong Kong and Shenzhen, finding a house or sustaining a family means you need an extremely high-paying job. This also means that marrying someone will become a major issue because getting a big enough house for a family is nearly impossible.
You might think this has nothing to do with technology.
Well, to answer this question you need to look at the tech advancements within the region. All the above-mentioned regions have one thing in common; they are the core of tech advancement. From Silicon Valley to some of the biggest tech hubs, these locations are slowly pushing the lower middle and poor people out of the vicinity.
Most people see this as a green report, which means this region does not have poor people. Well, not exactly. Since the average pay is so high, they now have a poor class that is not the same as any other country, region, or place. The average high-paying job that might land you a mansion, sports car, or a big enough house where your family can live, will only offer you a below-average lifestyle.
We know most people connect lifestyle with the internet and technology and there is no doubt about it. Good internet companies like Spectrum have indeed helped people run their businesses from the comfort of their homes. Moreover, they also offer inclusive Spectrum servicio al cliente for their Spanish customers. However, people who are relocating to regions for the sake of high-paying jobs are looking for more than basic amenities.
Most of the tech experts are seeing it as a new class of poor people. These people look wealthy when it comes to numbers but their lifestyle is below average. From living in coffin apartments to hunting for not-so-affordable studios, this so-called high paid poor class is struggling with fundamental necessities.
In other words, it is a myth that high pay will help you enjoy a better lifestyle. On the contrary, even an average job with minimum pay will help you have a better lifestyle if you are living in the suburbs.
High pay is not a deciding factor
In some regions of the world, especially in countries where tech jobs are highly sought after, the paying factor is losing its charm. Now, employees want companies to pay for their residence or at least arrange residence. Moreover, they also prefer jobs that cater to their family needs. From health care to schools, housing, and entrainment, employees are now seeking jobs that will offer them more than just money.
This is also affecting the overall population balance. People living in countries that are especially focusing on tech jobs, economic health, and pushing people into more work are now opting to stay childless.
This trend is pushing a lot of countries into negative population indexes, making their governments worried about the future of the countries. While most experts think that fixing the work culture will eventually fix the family dynamics, others feel this will not be enough because couples working within tech do not have enough time to take care of kids. On the contrary, if one of the partners leaves the job just to take care of the kids, this will impact the lifestyle of the family.
What is the way out?
Right now, most people think that the only way out is to locate tech hubs in places that are not dense or at least offer residence to the people working in big companies. However, this will leave out the population issue. To curb the issue, normalizing women in the workforce, and offering them equal pay and opportunities is very important.
Now, this is not just a tech issue, instead, this has become a workforce issue as well as a work lifestyle issue. Companies and governments need to come together and offer facilities that can help people enjoy a work-life balance. This is not limited to improving life but also improving the future and people who will be joining the workforce in the coming years.
Wrap Up
Simply put, the money you bring home has nothing to do with your buying capacity but instead, it depends on the region you live in. Instead of raising pay, it is more important to improve the buying capacity of the average worker.