The Empire of Reimia (3)

— For example, in the first town I visited, I met a furniture maker working for a private Rheian company. He worked eight hours a day, five days a week, and received a monthly salary for his work, which, with a few rare exceptions in the form of bonuses, did not depend on the number or quality of the furniture he produced or repaired. In other words, he sells not the product he creates, but his time, while the income from his labor goes to his employer. Isn't that slavery? One might argue that no one is forcing him to work, but as far as I know, people who have no money in this country risk dying of hunger.

-The income from his labor does indeed go to the entrepreneur. But there are reasons for this. The entrepreneur takes on other responsibilities: he must provide the premises or land where the work will take place, he must provide the tools with which the work will be done, and the materials from which the final product will be made. He must find people who will subsequently buy the product, and then provide the means to deliver it to them, if necessary. He must also negotiate with the landowner, the tool supplier, and the materials supplier. He does all this with his own money, without knowing in advance whether he will be able to make a profit. If he makes a mistake at any of these steps, he may end up with nothing, wasting his money and ending up in a worse position than he started. Meanwhile, the worker risks nothing – if his employer goes bankrupt tomorrow, the worker will not lose the money he has already earned. And, unlike a slave, the worker has a choice. He can try to save money and open his own furniture workshop. No one prevents him from opening it in his own home and taking on all the same risks that the entrepreneur takes – Parphinora smiled melancholically – that's how my older brother explained things to me. For the most part, I agreed with him, at least with regard to such mundane matters. However, even if we set aside these reflections, I would still highlight the main difference between a free Rheian and a slave. A free Rheian can go to Dreyeria to become a slave and be split into atoms, but a slave from Dreyeria cannot refuse to be split into atoms, go to Rheia, and work 8 hours in a factory.