Re: But I would like to think...

I agree with your consideration that you should get the full product of your work. However, two difficulties prevent this in the real world.

First, as an employee of someone else, clearly the job you do, no matter how crucial for your company, is provided by someone else and not created out of the blue. The company then obviously has to take a fee for allowing you to work that job instead of being jobless - because if you could take all the fruit of it, then the company would not be better by hiring you, no matter how good you were at your position. Of course, if you were self-employed, you would be able to enjoy all of the fruit of your work.

Second, how can you simultaneously support strong welfare and public services AND receiving the full fruit of your work. It is contradictory, because you can never get the full fruit if you are taxed, but you can never get strong welfare and public services if you are not. This is just one of many possible examples why political theory and political practice sometimes look like a square peg and a round hole.