GT Writing Task 2 / Essay Sample # 313
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
In some countries, a few people earn extremely high salaries. Some people think that this is good for a country, while others believe that the government should control salaries and limit the amount people can earn.
Discuss both these views and then give your own opinion.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
Model Answer:
A small number of people receive tremendously high salaries in many parts of the world. Some people contend that citizens with highly-paid jobs make their nations better, yet others think that remuneration ought to be controlled by the states. In this case, I agree with the people who believe that the government should cap the high-wage earner’s paycheck.
On the one hand, countries gain considerable advantage from people who earn a high wage. The reason is that the more citizens earn, the more tax on income is paid. This, in turn, increases the government’s income, thus allowing it to contribute heavily to the budget for the wellbeing of its citizens. Put simply, the government can make a substantial contribution to budgeting for human resource development, public infrastructure constructions, healthcare service and other social services when there is a significant rise in the number of citizens earning high rates of remuneration and paying more income taxes. Therefore, citizens can enjoy a better quality of life since public services are well maintained by the governments.
On the other hand, there is an obvious downside of just a few executives earning a huge remuneration. It widens the disparity between the rich and the poor. So it is thought that controlling the amount white-collar workers earn each month brings undeniable benefits to society by eradicating the wealth gap of the population. The disparity of wealth will decrease if people are paid a similar remuneration package. Consequently, it will create economic equality in the community. I prefer this school of thought because the disparity in salaries among citizens can lead to illegal activities. The reason is that it would be frustrating for some to receive a small salary while others receive an exorbitant salary without rational justification. This, in turn, can encourage people to use unfair means to get money.
To conclude, although having high paychecks improves the quality of life, capping high salaries is more beneficial to society because it would bring equality and prevent corruption to a great extent.
In some countries, a few people earn extremely high salaries. Some people think that this is good for a country, while others believe that the government should control salaries and limit the amount people can earn.
Discuss both these views and then give your own opinion.
Sample Essay:
Many nowadays think that to satisfy the need of the most vulnerable parts of our society and to bring equality in the modern job sectors, the government should cut the salaries of high-paying employees. Although it seems like a useful solution at a first glance and could help affiliate socio-economic tension in modern society, such measures have severe drawbacks and could lead to socio-economic catastrophes, in my opinion.
The proponents of the controlling salary of higher executives often point to the numerous benefits of such radical reform. To begin with, the fact that a great portion of the individuals who nowadays creates outsized compensation might be successfully allocated to the various governmental-funded welfare programs. This might sole problem with the poverty and even criminal activity among unprivileged segments of our society. Moreover, if all citizens receive approximately the same salary, it will bring equality to society and solve many social problems such as socio-economic conflicts between people who belong to the different social segments who work in different positions.
Nevertheless, despite some valuable arguments listed above, if the government cut salaries of the affluent citizens, such as owners of large companies or experienced and high-skilled workers, some of them might switch their occupation toward more effortless jobs or close their business and relocate in the more business-friendly country. This eventually might lead to economic downsizing and the absence or shortage of high-skilled employees and investors. The majority of employees in this situation will struggle to easily land high-quality jobs with outsized compensation and will look for more opportunities overseas or in different less-skilled occupations. This will lead to mass unemployment, fewer job opportunity, and even fraudulent activities from the companies’ owners in order to hide their income.
All in all, the government intervention in the outsized income of the most affluent citizens might create more drawbacks and even social disasters rather than solving the inequality problem.