[lotsofpulp]

>Workers that are paid massive salaries in the likes of SF & NYC is because the cost of living in those cities justify it.

This is incorrect. Workers are paid massive salaries because those same workers have an option of going to other employers who are willing to offer massive salaries.

[ZephyrBlu]

So your logic here is, "they're paid a lot because everyone else pays a lot as well".

That sounds like circular reasoning to me. What's the base reason for employers offering massive salaries?

[lotsofpulp]

Employers offer massive salaries when they can't find anyone cheaper. Just like people pay more for desirable beach front or mountain view property. Not only does it have to be desirable, but it has to be in relatively limited supply, such that the seller has options and so the buyer has to compete to win the seller, and obviously payer has to be able to pay.

Edit: If you continue down the road of reasoning, the desirability of an employee is related to how much net income the employee contributes to. The employer is betting that the work a specific programmer does will be integral to yielding billions in profit, so a few hundred thousand is a no brainer.

In contrast, a hotel on a desirable piece of land does not need to offer housekeepers massive salaries even though the work the housekeepers do is integral to the hotel's profits, because the housekeepers individually are more replaceable than a programmer.

Edit #2:

Note that doctors get paid more in rural, low cost of living areas than in high cost of living areas.

[sushid]

Supply and demand in the Bay Area. If I moved to Alabama, my TC would hands down drop unless I got lucky with a remote position.

[nkohari]

It's a market economy. No one decided one day to offer a certain salary, the market has figured it out over time (and will continue to do so as conditions change).