Go to main Forum page »
CEO pay is a hot topic. Actually we mostly use the term CEO incorrectly because the controversy is about some of the CEOs in the largest 500 companies, not the universe of CEOs. There is a big difference.
I read often that CEO pay drives health insurance premiums. That CEO pay raises the cost of a hamburger, that CEO pay takes from workers pay.
I find the perceptions people hold of the relationship between CEO compensation and prices and people amazing. Of course the big numbers are easy targets for critics.
Two things to consider. Most (60% or so) CEO compensation is not cash but stock awards often at risk, actually paid for by shareholders.
Second, do some math as I have. Divide the CEO’s compensation by insurance policy holders, hamburgers sold or number of employees and you will see a negligible impact on each unit – and that assumes the CEO receives no compensation.
Are all CEOs worth their pay? I’m inclined to say no, but that is a problem for company boards and shareholders.
I’ve done the math on several S&P 500 companies CEO pay, and it turned out that distributing the CEO pay to workers would result in a $.02 per hour per worker raise.
When a Criminal Evil Overpaid CEO like Musk demands $40 Billion PLUS,
& then turns around and fires 14,000 workers — we all pay in unemployment costs, extra addiction treatments, and more.
Especially when you could pay each of those workers $100,000 and hire an additional 14,000 at that pay for a cost of $2.8 Billion — a tiny fraction of Musk’s ridiculous fortune.
Power corrupts, and extreme inequality is a form of power for greedy CEOs. We all pay as they use that power to bribe politicians, etc.
CEOs can then commit crimes with immunity, for instance dumping toxic waste in our air and water — shortening our lives with cancer and other deadly consequences.
To say overpaid CEOs is a problem for shareholders is bizarre since with massive stock grants, CEOs ARE the major stock holders.
This July 4th weekend we need to extend “No taxation without representation” to “No work without representation”.
Then when a whiny wannabe CEO blubbers that they “need” more money in a week than a working stiff earns if they had worked every day since civilization began, AND if they do a lousy job they walk off with a multi-million $ golden parachute —
The workers can say, “NEXT!”
Pretty broad condemnation, not accurate but this is not the place to debate. However, CEOs ARE NOT the major stockholders in S&P companies. Even Bezos owns less than 10% of Amazon. Mutual funds typically are the largest shareholders.