Sometimes life just doesn't seem fair, does it? Salaries for various roles in society are not set by their value to society, they are set by other factors. As an example, a famous actor is paid a lot more than an unknown actor because by using them in a movie or TV show, they will bring an audience to see the movie or TV show and the studio will make more money because of them. Firefighters and teachers are paid by the city that employees them, and that city gets their money from taxes. They have to keep their budgets in line with the taxes that they earn. They set salaries based on what they are able to pay. As long as they can find people willing to work for that amount, they will have firefighters and teachers. If no one wants to work for that salary, they will not have firefighters and teachers. That may force the cities to increase the salary they offer, but then the city won't be able to pay for something else that they need.