From my perspective, working for an organization/company is very different both economically and structurally. I used to work for a nonprofit and before that a university, and I was not only compensated a salary but I also received health insurance, dental insurance, medical spending account, retirement benefits, disability and life insurance benefits for myself and my family. Those benefits were worth about 40-55% of my salary (and did not have to pay taxes on them). Since I worked there early in my career, my retirement savings have been growing, so that's an added benefit. In my opinion, a full time job with benefits is not just about a salary.

Now with my own consulting practice, I no longer have those benefits. I also pay 2x the tax on my earnings as a self employed person. So my hourly rate doesn't just go in my pocket. In addition to health insurance (which costs more than what many people pay in a mortgage and it soon may be more), I also pay for office space.

When I was employed, I also did not make less if I did less (i.e. don't have enough business). The guarantee of a salary and a guaranteed retirement savings, predictable health care insurance and the promise to help my family if I became sick or died, was nice.

I have been lucky that I have all the business I need, and in the past 2 years business has been so good that I have raised my fees and increased my estimates of what I think different projects will cost. My hourly rate is quite high by industry standards (I also have a Ph.D.) but my compensation total is probably a little better than what I'd earn if I were still in a full time job in my field.

I suppose my long winded point is that an hourly fee for a person in any business, including a T, has to be considered in the context of how expensive it is to run any business. I don't think it's equivalent to compare a salaried employee of an organization/business and the hourly fee of someone who works for themselves.

I think many people don't get paid what they deserve, especially those who teach or provide other services to people. I don't begrudge those with extraordinary high salaries, good for them. I consider the fees for my therapist to be reasonable within the area, for being in private practice. If I thought they were too high, I would go see someone cheaper or go less often to therapy.