[shoo]

I guess it depends where you're living, and what opportunities you are aware of - or are available to you - and what your next best alternative is.

If you really need the money and don't have another option then working for a very modest quantity of money sure seems like a much better deal than working for none at all.

[k__]

Also the unawareness happens in the other direction too.

I know a bunch of freelancers who get paid a ridiculous amount of money for simple web-dev stuff, just because the companies they work for don't know anything about this and are simply happy to have found a dev.

[carrotleads]

That may well be the case but a dev should not trade his/her time at similar rates to other skills that didn't take much time/effort to learn..

dev skill isn't a common one, it takes a special kind of mindset to be a half decent dev...