Among the libertarian movement, it is a given that the Marxist idea of wage slavery is a sophism. In a truly free society, individuals would only enter into wage employment because they perceive benefit from it. That is, the employee and the employer only exchange if, ex ante, they expect to gain. Otherwise the exchange would simply not occur. So, all voluntary exchanges in a free (stateless) society are mutually beneficial.
However, in 2008 we do not live in a free society. There are governments that murder, steal, and enslave innocent people. They prevent voluntary interaction and impose coercive relationships. Suffice to say, the present conditions are not at all close to those of a free society. Then, given that we live in an unfree society, are employees the victims of wage slavery? Keep reading...
