The crisis attacks companies, but not CEOs. On the one hand, the growth prospects for the US economy are weak – the latest estimates forecast a 1,5% increase in GDP in 2011 and 1,8% in 2012, an inflation of 3,5% and unemployment at 8,6% – and wages have fallen or remained unchanged for almost all workers. On the other hand, however, the salaries of top managers show no signs of decreasing.
According to a survey by the British Guardian newspaper US CEO salaries have grown 27% to 40% this year. But if we look at the financial crisis, what is surprising is the appalling increase in profits deriving from stock options: the Average value of earnings obtained in this form grew by 70% in 2010 from $950 to $1,3 billion.
The Russell 3000, an index that measures nearly all US stocks in the market, rose 16,93% in 2010, while CEO payouts rose 27,19% overall. For CEOs of listed companies belonging to the S&P 500, the overall earnings (also considering pensions, incentives and stock options) grew by an average of 36,47%.
The highest paid manager in the United States is John Hammergren, CEO of healthcare provider McKesson, which would earn $ 145,2 million in 2010. Adding up the salaries of the ten top US managers last year, a value of over 770 million is reached. But there are no bankers in this top ten list: three out of 10 CEOs come from the healthcare system and the greatest gain has been obtained through stock options.
Read the article about Guardian
