Absolute wealth or relative wealth

Jus' thinking. Which would people prefer:

a) To get paid £100,000 a year for a specific job whilst everyone else earned £50,000 a year.

b) To get paid £200,000 a year for a specific job whilst everyone else earned £400,000 a year.

I think people would tend to say "b", but in reality would feel happier with "a".

To be better off than others gives people satisfaction, but to earn less than everyone else is not good for one's self esteem. Of course, ideally, we ought to be solely interested in our absolute wealth.