The Price of Fairness

Lao Wang pushed open the office door, and a wave of heat hit him. It wasn't that the air conditioner was broken, but that everyone was red-faced, as if they had just come out of a steamer. Today was the first day of the company's "absolute fairness" system.

The cause was a while ago, when actor Yu Shi's statement "We just want fairness" caused a huge response on the Internet. The boss was deeply inspired and decided to implement an "absolute fairness" system in the company.

The so-called "absolute fairness" was to completely equalize the salaries, benefits, and workload of all employees. There would be no more hierarchy, no more performance appraisals, and everyone would be an "ordinary employee."

Lao Wang was originally the technical director, but now he received the same salary as the new intern, Xiao Li. He looked at the mountain of reports on his desk, and then at Xiao Li leisurely playing with his mobile phone next to him. He had mixed feelings.

At lunch, the cafeteria also had a new look. The chef mixed all the dishes together, like a pot of stew. Everyone received the same amount, regardless of whether it was meat or vegetables, or whether it was a staple or a side dish. Lao Wang poked at the things in his bowl, unable to tell which was meat and which was potato.

In the afternoon meeting, the conference room was in chaos. Everyone had the right to speak, but no one listened carefully. Lao Wang's technical improvement proposal was refuted to pieces by a recent graduate. The reason was "It's not fair, why is your proposal better?"

When he got off work, Lao Wang saw Xiao Li carrying limited edition sneakers and driving away in the latest sports car. He was puzzled. Xiao Li's family was so wealthy, yet he received the same salary as him. Was this fair?

In the following week, the company seemed to have fallen into a funhouse mirror. Some people slacked off at work because it was the same whether they worked more or less; some people began to sell their valuable items because it was the same no matter how much money they earned; some people simply took long vacations because no one was in charge anyway.

The former "elite" Lao Wang also felt bursts of powerlessness at this moment. He began to miss the past workplace, which was full of competition, full of challenges, imperfect, but full of vitality.

On this day, the company held a "fairness-themed" speech contest, and everyone could go on stage to share their understanding of "fairness."

When it was Lao Wang's turn, he slowly walked to the front of the stage and looked around at the colleagues with numb faces and empty eyes. He was not impassioned, nor did he burst into tears. He just said lightly:

"I used to think that fairness was to let everyone stand on the same starting line. Now I understand that the true meaning of fairness is to give everyone the opportunity to realize their own value, not to obliterate individual differences."

There was silence in the audience, and a few people began to whisper to each other, not knowing what they were discussing.

Just when Lao Wang thought the speech was about to end, the door of the conference room was suddenly pushed open.

The boss walked in with a strange smile on his face, holding a huge banner in his hand, with several large characters embroidered with golden silk thread: "Absolute fairness, everyone is equal!"

He excitedly announced: "According to the new assessment criteria, Lao Wang performed outstandingly in this speech. He not only deeply understood the true meaning of fairness, but also bravely expressed his own views! Therefore, after unanimous decision by the company's senior management, Lao Wang will receive the only reward for this speech contest - an extra workload!"

Everyone was in an uproar. Lao Wang looked at the thick stack of documents in the boss's hand and suddenly felt that today's "absolute fairness" seemed even more absurd.

He finally understood that the so-called fairness was just a tool to cover up unfairness. And the real absurdity was that when everyone pursued absolute fairness, they ended up with absolute inequality.