Programmer: We computer programmers

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Stimulus

Programmer: We computer programmers at Mytheco are demanding raises to make our average salary comparable with that of the technical writers here who receive, on average, 20 percent more in salary pay difference is unfair and intolerable.

Mytheco executive: But many of the technical writers have worked for Mytheco longer than have many of the programmers. Since salary and benefits at Mytheco are directly tied to difference you mention is perfectly acceptable.

What this question is testing

Evaluate

Programmer

The pay gap (writers make 20% more than programmers) is unfair.

Executive

Pay is based on seniority, and many writers have been here longer than many programmers — so the gap is justified.

Evaluate

The executive's response is shaky. "Many writers have more seniority than many programmers" sounds reasonable, but it's not actually a strong claim. You could have a few super-senior writers and a few brand-new programmers, but the averages for the two groups could be roughly the same — in which case the seniority story doesn't justify a 20% gap at all.

To evaluate the executive's defense, we'd need to know how the average seniority of writers compares to the average seniority of programmers. If the averages are similar, the seniority story breaks down.

Goal

Find the question that gets at the average seniority comparison between the two groups.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question

Evaluating the adequacy of the Mytheco executive’s response requires a clarification of which one

Answer choices

Out of Scope2% picked this
whether any of the technical writers at Mytheco once worked as programmers
Whether some writers used to be programmers doesn't affect whether the seniority-based pay system actually justifies the 20% gap. Their job-history details would not change the average seniority comparison or the fairness analysis. Doesn't bear on the executive's defense.
2%
Correct94% picked this
how the average seniority of programmers compares with the average seniority
Why this is right
This nails the gap. The executive defended the 20% gap by saying pay tracks seniority and "many writers" have more seniority than "many programmers." But that vague comparison is consistent with the two groups having similar average seniority — in which case the seniority story can't justify the gap. Knowing how the average seniority of programmers compares to the average seniority of writers tells us whether the seniority-based system actually predicts the 20% gap. If averages are roughly equal, the executive's defense fails.
Skill tested: Evaluate · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.
94%
Out of Scope3% picked this
whether the sorts of benefits an employee of Mytheco receives are tied to the salary
The executive's defense already explicitly says salary AND benefits are tied to seniority. We don't need to clarify whether benefits are tied to salary as a separate matter. This doesn't bear on the seniority-comparison gap that actually drives the dispute.
3%
Out of Scope0% picked this
whether the Mytheco executive was at one time a technical writer
The executive's personal job history is irrelevant to whether the seniority-based pay system justifies the 20% gap. The argument is about pay structure, not about the executive's biases or background.
0%
Out of Scope1% picked this
how the Mytheco executive’s salary compares with that of
The executive's salary isn't part of the comparison. The dispute is about programmers vs. writers; what an executive earns is a separate matter and doesn't affect whether seniority justifies the writer-programmer gap.
1%

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