I find this argument weak as an "in favor" argument. How much we pay for things is also a status proxy ("You got that for how much? How much did I pay? Hrm, I don't remember...."). And we simply chose it to be this way. We could just as easily insist on transparency so that less people get ripped off.
The real issue is that, bizarrely, workers buy into silly fantasies about "family" etc., instead of realizing that selling your time for a wage is a market action and must be treated as such.
There is a similar thing going on with sex. The difference between a back rub and rub&tug isn't just the target location, it's also the associated taboos and stigmas.
(Circuit IV, for those of you who've read Prometheus Rising...)