Do you have a source for the claim that companies that treat workers badly are able to extract more productivity from them? Or is it just that companies that are enjoyable places to work don't need to pay as much to retain workers? Or you mean that "worker oriented" companies don't prioritise productivity at worker's expense? Maybe I misunderstood your point there. Edit: you also have to take into account shareholders sucking the value out of companies, generally companies pay as little as they can get away with rather than the opposite