I live in the S.F. Bay area and there is a 'dissagrement' gong on between the unionized trash collectors and management. Now these guys make $75,000 a year to drive a truck around and empty trash cans.
Maybe that could be considered excessive. or?
Excessive? I've no idea, as I don't know what the prevailing wage is.
However one of the bits of the big picture that I see neglected in this thread, is the fact that in a lot of industries, & retail (etc...) the big cheese makes as much as several thousand times what the lowest paid worker gets.
Some businesses have a rule in that the highest paid employee (including the CEO) makes at the most 10 times what the lowest paid employee makes.
This sort of thing makes a LOT of sense.
The current trend in retail is really off, in that the Big Cheese may make $20,000,000 a year and the low paid foreign worker who is making the product, gets maybe $1,000 a year.
I guess this could be a pertinent part of the subject. I took the Wal-Mart thread subject to primarily mean as a retail/employment source. The pros and cons specifically in those regards. But yes, I can see where CEO and other upper corporate types pay could be an issue.
I can appreciate that $23 mil seems totally exorbitant for compensation. And the pay disparity is one of the worst in retail. However, it is still some of the best paid and benefited retail companies. If you'd like to change these things, the best way is to 1) not support them with your dollar or 2) buy stock in them so you have a say in the policies. Then you can try to influence others, either way, to do the same.
Outraged? Fine. But there are still hundreds if not thousands of people lining up to appy for jobs any time a new Wal-Mart opens. It's sort of like the U.S. in general. We get all this criticism from every direction (primarily media and some politicians) yet people are still so anxious to come here, for opportunity, medical care, education, etc. When Wal-Mart gets too far out, believe me, the market forces, the employees and John Q. Public will bring about a correction.
But keep the government out. I don't want them telling any of us how much we can or can't make. If you have the opportunity to invent the great, next, best-since-sliced-bread invention, I say BRAVO! Hope you totally strike it rich, and there is no one to tell you, "Uh, excuse me. Invent what you want, but don't plan on getting rich from it."
We just saw the totall fiasco of Home Depot having to pay off Bob Nardeli to get him to go away and stop damaging their good name.
Hate to say it, but the whole thing, from Nardelli's hiring to the finale was controlled by the stockholders and the board. This has happened time and time again in companies. Some make a comeback (like Chrysler under Lee Iocca, and GE under Jack Welch, for example) and some don't. ATT is another major mega-corp that has been up, down, down-for-the-count, then came back swinging. But in the end, HD has gone through the process, and time will tell.
The same could happen to Wal-Mart. At this time, stockholders and Board members are all pleased with H. Lee Scott's performance. He is running a company with 2 mil employees. Currently they are cutting prices right and left, which of course is going to cut into profit margins. Time will tell if the masses will remain satisfied.
Even if the CEO just happens to have a PHD in business & finance, is ANYONE worth $20,000,000 a year? Just exactly how much experence, education, (or WHATEVER...) can you bring to a job that makes you worth all that loot?
We can have our opinions, and decide how we will act in light of that, but those things are not for us to decide, or determine.
Its a GAME! Billy Gates acumulated all that loot, because he can, he is a master salesman!
Its a cool thing that Billy Gates has given away a lot of money for humanitian projects, and thats good, but given that there are people with lots of money from their OIL investments who are using that money to BUY CONGRESS and the system in this country is suffering greatly because of it!
Even further off subject, and your rantings merely sound like irrational envy.
Mad King George gets to do UNCONSTITUTIONAL things
because he can get away with it!
... yet even further off topic...
WE_THE_PEOPLE need to tell CONGRESS to stop working for GREED INC. and work for WE_THE_PEOPLE!
Can't disagree with the principle, imagine We-The-People becoming more involved! Great idea! But still, off topic...
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Glad you got that off your chest!
