I work in Civil Engineering for a municipality in the bay area. We are having an incredibly difficult time getting any qualified applicants because it is not enjoyable to live in the bay area on the salary we offer compared to the cost of living. I'm pretty sure the salary for tech workers is not to compensate for cost of living, especially when I look at what my parents could afford on a blue collar salary in the North Bay when I was growing up. It is the wages paid that are raising the cost of living, not the cost of living raising the wages.