1. Paid-for healthcare. In the US, I pay close to $2K/month premium for a high-deductible health insurance plan.
2. Subsidized child-care (kindergarten, etc.)
3. Paid-for higher education. That in itself is worth at least $250K/child.
4. Great public transport, which eliminates the need to have more than 1 car (as opposed to 3-4 per household in the US)
5. Decent infrastructure in general (airports, train stations, etc). The US looks like a third-world country.
Also, please keep in mind that while income taxes in the US are a bit lower, they are still significant:
- State tax (usually 5-7%)
- Real-estate taxes. It is not uncommon to pay $1000/month for a very average house in a Boston suburb with good schools.
- "Invisible" taxes, such as excise taxes (cars, oats, etc), alcohol, tobacco, gasoline taxes.
That doesn't make any sense. There's social security in the US as well and the company is paying for my health insurance.
edit:
Honestly, why the downvotes? What he was stated was inaccurate and doesn't account for any of the pay differences between the US and Europe.