Do We Pay Athletes Too Much?
Do professional athletes get paid too much?
In my personal opinion: No
In this modern era this is an ethical issue that comes up more and more often. This has been brought up especially in times of economic hardship and the recession whereby families are really struggling to make ends meet with unemployment, delay of retirement and general reductions in disposable income. During this paper it shall be discussed how the ethical issue of high wages came about, why it is an issue, who is affected and what actions can be taken.
Why is there this ethical problem?
To put it simply, it is a matter of personal opinion and knowledge on whether you believe professional athletes in the United States should get paid the level of wages that they do. Below is a chart produced by Canbridge University which gives an introductory represenation of the salaries professional athletes earn annually.
From June 2008 to June 2009, the highest paid professional athlete, Tiger Woods, made $110 million according to Forbes. Also on their list, at number two, was Kobe Bryant making $45 million, and Michael Jordan with the same amount (and Michael Jordan hasn’t played in quite a while!). According to Forbes Magazine, the highest paying “regular” job in the U.S. during 2009 was that of a surgeon. The average annual pay of a surgeon last year was $206,770 (also out of Forbes). While the average pay for classroom teachers in the United States is $38,000 per year. At that rate, a teacher would need a little more than 27 years to make $1 million — less than half what a basketball player makes, on average, in just one year. The average pay for fire-fighters in the United States is around $40,000. The starting salary for police officers in the United States is around $29,000.
Do athletes deserve more money than fire-fighters or teachers — people who hold what many consider being more valuable jobs? This is the basis of where this ethical problem comes about.
Some people work their entire
In my personal opinion: No
In this modern era this is an ethical issue that comes up more and more often. This has been brought up especially in times of economic hardship and the recession whereby families are really struggling to make ends meet with unemployment, delay of retirement and general reductions in disposable income. During this paper it shall be discussed how the ethical issue of high wages came about, why it is an issue, who is affected and what actions can be taken.
Why is there this ethical problem?
To put it simply, it is a matter of personal opinion and knowledge on whether you believe professional athletes in the United States should get paid the level of wages that they do. Below is a chart produced by Canbridge University which gives an introductory represenation of the salaries professional athletes earn annually.
From June 2008 to June 2009, the highest paid professional athlete, Tiger Woods, made $110 million according to Forbes. Also on their list, at number two, was Kobe Bryant making $45 million, and Michael Jordan with the same amount (and Michael Jordan hasn’t played in quite a while!). According to Forbes Magazine, the highest paying “regular” job in the U.S. during 2009 was that of a surgeon. The average annual pay of a surgeon last year was $206,770 (also out of Forbes). While the average pay for classroom teachers in the United States is $38,000 per year. At that rate, a teacher would need a little more than 27 years to make $1 million — less than half what a basketball player makes, on average, in just one year. The average pay for fire-fighters in the United States is around $40,000. The starting salary for police officers in the United States is around $29,000.
Do athletes deserve more money than fire-fighters or teachers — people who hold what many consider being more valuable jobs? This is the basis of where this ethical problem comes about.
Some people work their entire
Citations: Badenhausen, Kurt. Top 100 paid athletes. N.p.: Forbes, 2012. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2012/06/18/mayweather-tops-list-of-the-worlds-100-highest-paid-athletes/>. NBA. NBA salary cap. N.p.: NBA.com, 2008. N. pag. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.nba.com/news/salarycap_070710.html>. "Salaries of Professional Athletes." FreeMoneyFinance. N.p., 2006. Web. 10 Jan 2012. <http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2006/09/salaries_of_ave.html>. Cambridge University. Pros paid too much? Cambridge: Cambridge University, 2011. N. pag. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.cambridge.org/other_files/downloads/esl/strageticreading/6843_SRL1_U04_P09.01_sport.pdf>. UPENN. Where 's the business in sport? Philladelphia: University of Pennsylvania, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <bpp.wharton.upenn.edu/./The%20Business%20of%20Sports.pdf>. Zeisler, Zeisler, Rawson & Johnson LLP. Taxes: Cost of being a professional athlete. N.p.: ZZLRJ.com, 2011. N. pag. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.zzrllp.com/28.htm>. Salary Cap Penalties. N.p.: Forbes, 2012. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/monteburke/2012/05/23/the-nfls-bizarre-salary-cap-penalties-for-the-dallas-cowboys-and-the-washington-redskins/>.