I'm sitting here cutting a purchase order for some work a manufacturer's technician did at my plant, and the “labor” cost per hour is $175 (standard, not overtime).
Now I don't know exactly how much this company's techs make–I know it's more than me, considering we had another mechanic leave here to work for them…but I guarantee it's not more than double what I make. Travelling technicians get paid well but not that well.
So let's say these guys are making $50/hr (just shy of double my wage and highly unlikely). That's still $125 the manufacturer is just pocketing. 250% of the technician's theoretical wage, and more than 2/3 of the total take. Again, I don't know the tech's exact wage, but regardless we all know the company's pocketing the vast majority of the “labor” cost.
Just a real-world example of how our labor is exploited, and one small piece in the puzzle of astronomically high , ever-rising prices.