You raise some very valid points, here Harold, which need to be addressed notwithstanding the rest of what I have to say here.

I would just like to raise the possibility that the three cases listed might be doing their current jobs because they find them fulfilling. I realise that this is perhaps unlikely, all things considered, but it is possible.

I get a little worried by the tacit denigration of such jobs. They form an integral part of our society and represent an honest way to make a living. Imagine, if you will, a child in a class where the teacher says, "Unless you do better, you're going to wind up flipping burgers at MacDonalds!" as if to indicate that this is the epitome of failure. What message does that communicate to the kid whose Dad flips burgers for a living or who has himself been considering it as a career option?

I have a fried who is a nursery nurse. It pays a pittance, but she loves the work and is really good at it. She makes it possible for parents to go out and earn a far better living than she does, entrusted with taking care of their very precious children. But ask her what she does for a living and she says "Oh, I'm just a nursery nurse." Just. I am on a one-person mission to wean her off that word!

We need our nursery nurses, our pizza delivery guys/gals, our cleaners, our garbage collectors. They do good and important work. When and why did society decide that the very people who facilitate the lives we lead should be made to feel ashamed of what they do?

Sorry - soapbox moment!