If it weren't for the government distorting the wages then the Foreman would have similar wages. The Journeyman under the Foreman would be paid less. One reason these companies became available for sale is that the company became non-competitive. It's workforce was quality, but it ability to perform was non-competitive. In most companies, the workforce is about the same age as the Owner.
Young people can produce a lot of work.
When the business matures and the Owner is 50 then the workforce is often 50, and this is when they lose their ability to compete on performance. Older people usually cannot produce hard physical work as fast as young people. This made the company non-competitive. We had two solutions. First, we were very proactive about bringing in new young people and training them.