If CEOs Take Our Money, We Can Limit Their Pay
We applaud—big time—the move by President Obama to limit the pay of CEOs on the taxpayer dole. If they can take our money to survive, they can cut back on the yachts and third homes. The Obama plan would cap salaries at $500,000 for top executives at firms that accept “extraordinary assistance” from the government.
As the Economic Policy Institute noted, the financial services industry pays its CEOs more than any other industry—in 2007, those salaries averaged nearly $18 million. Even the median salary—the typical CEO salary, with half of all CEOs earning less—is massive, with median CEO pay in financial services roughly $16.5 million in 2007.
Contrast this with the average wage in 2006 of a U.S. worker—$37,078. The median wage is even lower—$24,892.
