CIO has just released the 2005 version of the Executive PayWatch

[Jon8503]

website and database—and you’ve got to see what these guys are getting paid!
Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott presides over a company that just settled legal cases involving child labor violations (for $135,540) and hiring undocumented immigrants as janitors (for $11 million). Scott’s company still faces a massive sex discrimination class action suit and numerous legal actions accusing the company of forcing hundreds of thousands of Wal-Mart employees to work “off the clock.”

Wal-Mart’s in the hot seat for closing down a Canadian store rather than bargain with workers who voted to form a union. A former executive is accused of cheating on expense reimbursements to fund secret union-busting projects, according to The Wall Street Journal. Wal-Mart pays employees too little to keep a family of four out of poverty—and because of low wages, high costs and corporate manipulation, fewer than half of Wal-Mart workers have company health care coverage. But did Lee Scott get in trouble? No—he got a 2004 pay package worth almost $23 million!
An average Joe or Jane like us would work 901 years to match Lee Scott’s take for 2004 alone.

Scott is just one example of runaway CEO pay—and he’s not even at the top of the list of overpaid corporate execs. That spot is taken by Yahoo CEO Terry Semel, who raked in an unbelievable $109,301,385 (that’s million) in total compensation last year. In 2004, the average CEO of a major company received $9.84 million in total compensation—a 12 percent increase over 2003, compared with the inflation-ravaged 3.6 percent raise the average worker got.


Every dollar these CEOs are overpaid is a dollar that could be going to shareholders—including working folks saving for their retirement or to put a child through college. That’s why union pension funds are taking on runaway CEO pay right in the boardroom with shareholder proposals to limit stock options and tie CEO compensation to performance.

Take a minute to visit AFL-CIO Executive PayWatch. See what CEOs are taking home, how your pay compares—and what you can do to stop runaway CEO pay. Click here:

www.paywatch.org

[napi21]

1. I've been complaining about this for years. The problem is

the major stockholders are mutual fund managers, millionair investors, and the damn corp exect themselves! Who the hell are you going to got to fight for you? Believe me, I've tried, but my paultry sum in the market doesn't even get me recognized as a piece of dirt!

I doubt the unions will be able to do anything. They've lost so much power, they don't weild much more influence than I do.

[Yupster]

2. Agree napi

It's got to be the stockholders who controll pay, but the way the proxys are worded, it's impossible to have any influence.

The other problem is the insestuous relationships between the members of the Boards of Trustees and the CEO's.

Too many times ther Trustees are out of work politicians who aren't going to criticize the management of the company because they're looking toward their next campaign and will need the fund raisers and corporate jets and meetups that the CEO's can provide.

It's a very incestuous relationship and the stockholders are the ones getting screwed.

[Lindacooks]

3. Kicked and nominated.

This is one of the key issues of our day. WHEN is the average Joe or Jane going to stand up and demand that these robber barons start taking pay cuts and paying their employees better? Not to mention offering actual benefits??

How many workers can a company hire, at good wages, with good benefits, for $109,000,000??