CEO pay hikes double!
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| Wed, 07-28-2004 - 2:15pm |
Corporate Library survey finds median raise for S&P 500 CEO was 22.18% in 2003.
http://money.cnn.com/2004/07/28/news/economy/ceo_pay/index.htm?cnn=yes
The CEO's at the nation's largest companies saw their raises more than doubled in 2003 as the median raise handed out by S&P 500 companies to their top executives was 22.18 percent, according to a study by The Corporate Library.
The watchdog group said that stock options and awards of restricted stock drove the larger pay hikes. But most elements of the pay -- base salary, annual bonuses, restricted stock, long-term incentive payout, value realized from stock options and total compensation -- showed increases. The only type of compensation not to show a gain was the value of stock option grants during the year.
"This double-digit rise in pay shows that calls for pay restraint appear to be being ignored," said the statement from the group.
It said four S&P 500 companies -- Apple Computer (AAPL: Research, Estimates), Oracle (ORCL: Research, Estimates), Yahoo! (YHOO: Research, Estimates) and Colgate-Palmolive (CL: Research, Estimates), upped their CEO pay by well over 1,000 percent.
The compensation for all CEOs, a total sample of 1,429 companies, show median pay increases of 15 percent, up from 9 percent increases in 2002. The median is the pay increase at which there are the same number of pay increases that are greater and that are less.


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The interest is due to the class warfare that these types of posts promote. The vast majority of Americans are doing just fine or better than they were 4 years ago.
"Your post sounded mean spirited & lacking in compassion, IMO."
That is the difficulty with message boards in general. Perception is inferred based on strictly words, grammer, writing style etc. You lose the ability to "read" the person you are talking to like you can when you do so face to face or even verbally.
I've read tons of posts (not just this board) and the writers sound pompous, ignorant, uninformed, closed minded or just plain dumb. I may think that but I would never respond that way on a board because I may be misreading their posts. I've been called a bigot, racist, cold hearted and a few other things on just this board. Now how anyone on this board knows me well enough to makes those statements are beyond me. I have never responded with name calling or personal attacks. I'm better than that. My arguments are better than that. I don't need personal attacks in my "arsenal" I've got plenty more. Now there are cetainly posts on this topics that are seem to be whining about their place in society and how others are more fortunate. Those people do themselves a disservice wasting their time complaining about the rich if they aren't content with their lives.
Libraone, I can't think of but a handful of times we have agreed on any topic. We could hardly be more opposite politically but I do throughly enjoy our debates. I love the debates with others on this board. Go through my posts and you will see that I have been attacked personally on a regular basis based on my beliefs. I have NEVER attacked in turn. Like I said, I don't need to.
I'll double check my posts before posting to make sure they don't sound mean spirited. Sometimes they lack compassion but I can only feel for someone so much when they continue to complain about their lots in life.
Jim
LOL...I hear ya there, mine are little (2 & 3) but now I'm gearing up for one going to pre-school this fall and enrolling them in our local SKIP program (Successful Kids = Involved Parents) which sponsers all sorts of activities including a weekly group reading session...and we're thinking of enrolling our daughter in gymnastics.
LOL...and somehow I thought things would get less hectic when they weren't infants anymore.
No mistake to made, simple fact is that when it boils right down to it, with the size of our family, after allowable deductions, that income put us below poverty level. We could have, by rights, at least collected food assistance from the state, and possibly cash assistance as well, but chose not to.
Jumping in....so forgive the intrustion.
Mine are 5 and 2 and I'm in the same boat as you. I figured once I changed my last diaper it would get easier. Nope. That is the great thing and exhausting thing about kids. It never gets easier or less hectic, just different.
Yesterday for example, I don't know what my son (5) ate, but he got a question bug and he didn't stop the whole day....he was on and on...phew.
You are right, why should I have any hope for my children? Gosh, I should just preen them to work in low-end, thankless jobs for crappy wages because some analyst says that the job market is going to stink in the future.
I commend you for that. This is the type of spirit and determination that makes this country successful.
What amazes me is that hayashig can make a sarcastic response like this: "I guess you can't call it a refund, can you. You should call it a gift, and I wouldn't brag about it incase the IRA made a mistake and comes to collect." like you are getting something you didn't deserve or made a mistake and then purports to champion the middle class. I'd take this as a wonderful sign. You're well on your way to being a successful wealthy family.
:)
You know, some days I pine for the times when I would just hold my children, all tiny, quiet and helpless as they were, because sometimes in retrospect those days seemed simpler. But then I wouldn't have the laughs that I do when my 3 year old tells me that things she sees on Sesame Street are "propesterous" or any of the other zillion things she does that seem so outrageous and grown up all at the same time. Or I wouldn't be able to look at my son, who is very quiet and doesn't talk much and see the moments of pure wisdom in his face. Being a parent is definitely the most challenging and perplexing role I've ever undertaken in my life.
It bugs me that there seems to be two extremes of thinking in general in this country: refuse all help or take complete and utter advantage of all help. I think there is nothing wrong with taking assistance if it is needed. It bothers me when others try to make people feel ashamed for taking assistance. We've been very broke at times in the past, counting and rolling saved change for gas...squeezing every penny possible out of the grocery money our budget allowed...but if there had ever been a time that our kids weren't fed and clean, we would have taken help, for their sake. On the other side of the coin there are people who exploit the system that is in place to help people get back on their feet again, in part making those who do rightfully take assistance be seen in a shameful light by others. Everyone has needed some help at some time in their life, it's what has been done with that help that really matters. How did helping this person assist them in bettering their life in the long run?
"I'd take this as a wonderful sign. You're well on your way to being a successful wealthy family. "
While this may sound kind of hokey, our past money problems have never effected our family on a grand level because we don't let it. I think being poor is a state of mind, just as being wealthy is. I'm also a firm believer that attitude dictates much of what happens to us in life. Dwell on failure and one will wallow in it forever. Focus on success and it will be prepetuated as a result of that attitude.
Well said, I wish you and yours the best and continued success. You guys sound like you'll do fine...regardless of a CEO's pay hike.
Thanks. And I must add that some of the nations most successful CEOs are inspiring to both my husband and I (being very business minded as we are) because many of them started their companies with little more than an idea and a boat load of determination.
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