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This is mostly true, but I think it leaves one thing out: risk. You can get a programmer for $40K that will be as good as a $80K programmer if you're willing to take a risk - e.g. folks early in their career who haven't proven themselves yet. You just can't guarantee it ahead of time. It's risky. And if you find someone awesome, they won't stay at $40K for long.

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you can also make tradeoffs... e.g. the programmer who, say, has poor interpersonal skills, all other things being equal, will not be able to command the same wage as someone else who is just as good of a programmer with better interpersonal skills. If you can find a programmer who has a problem holding down their market value that you can deal with more easily than most employers, you can come away with a deal that is good for you and for the programmer in question.

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