The way competition works is as follows. Company A prices their goods at price level 1. Company B prices their identical goods at price level 2, which is lower than price level 1. Customers buy more goods from company B than from A. Company A then drops their prices to price level 3, which is lower than price level 2. This process continues until both companies cannot lower their prices anymore. Company A, wanting a bigger profit margin, raises their prices again, but makes their store look more attractive and keeps it cleaner than company B does. In addition, their salespeople greet customers at the door and help them find everything they need. Customers enjoy shopping there more and don't mind paying higher prices, while other customers just want lower prices so shop at company B. This is how Circuit City, Best Buy and Walmart were able to co-exist at the same time while selling the same items. Of course, CC made some crucial mistakes and disappeared, but that's also how competition works. They failed to make the case to the customers that their higher prices were justified.
The point is, there is no "ethical" pricing model. Under Capitalism, prices are set at what customers are willing to pay, no more and no less. If those prices are high enough for the companies to sell the items and make a profit, they are sold. Some people are willing to pay $150 for a perfectly seasoned and cooked steak at a top-ranked steak house but are only willing to pay $5 for a cheeseburger at McDonald's. If the steak house was prohibited from charging exorbitant prices, you couldn't get the same experience with the same quality steak, and this model allows both the steak house and McDonald's to sell beef to customers at different prices.
Here's the bottom line, companies are in business to make money and want to charge the highest prices possible while customers are in the business of getting goods and services at the lowest prices they can find. Put those together and companies with prices that are too high, ala Circuit City, go out of business while those who charge less stay in business. Best Buy is still around even though Walmart charges lower prices for the same things because they have convinced the customers that it is worth paying more for their goods.
Why aren't you complaining that customers don't want to pay fair prices for things so workers can keep their jobs? Are they not being greedy?
