Report: Minnesota CEOs Paid 127 Times More than the Average Worker
2014 Executive PayWatch exposes high paid CEOs in the low wage economy
According to the AFL-CIO’s 2014 Executive PayWatch website, the average CEO of a company based in Minnesota made $5,725,683, 127 times more than the $44,932 earned by the average Minnesota private sector worker.
This year, the highest paid CEO in the state of Minnesota is Gregg W. Steinhafel of Target. He makes 595 times more than the average worker in Minnesota.
While many companies may argue that they can’t afford to raise wages, across the country the nation’s largest companies are earning higher profits per employee than they did five years ago. In 2013, the S&P 500 Index companies earned $41,249 in profits per employee, a 38% increase.
“Here in Minnesota we’ve taken a big step by raising the minimum wage, but companies should be paying their workers a living wage. CEO PayWatch is an effective tool to show workers that it is time for CEOs to compensate their hard working employees fairly once and for all,” said Minnesota AFL-CIO President Shar Knutson.
Many of the CEOs highlighted in PayWatch head companies, like Walmart, that are notorious for paying low wages. Meanwhile, U.S. CEOs – the highest paid in the world – pocketed an average of $11.7 million in 2013. That means CEOs were paid 331 times that of the average worker and 774 times more than workers making minimum wage.
“CEO Executive PayWatch calls attention to the insane level of compensation for CEOs, while the workers who create those corporate profits struggle for enough money to take care of the basics,” said Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO. “This database is relevant to every community in the country. And we’ll use this data to organize and mobilize to lift millions of workers out of poverty and to strengthen the middle class.”
PayWatch is the most comprehensive searchable online database tracking the excessive pay of CEOs of the nation’s largest companies. It offers visitors to the website the unique ability to compare their own pay to the pay of top executives. This year, PayWatch highlights five low wage companies through worker testimonials at Walmart, Kellogg’s, Reynolds, Darden Restaurants and T-Mobile.