CEO bonuses are falling fast, study finds

[OhioChick]

Source: Reuters India

Tue Mar 10, 2009 4:09am IST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Annual bonuses for U.S. chief executives are shrinking, though the declines may be cold comfort for shareholders rocked by big stock market declines.

The median total bonus pay for chiefs of 173 large U.S. companies fell 19.1 percent in fiscal 2008 from a year earlier, dropping to $889,715 from $1.1 million, according to new data from compensation research firm Equilar Inc to be released formally on Tuesday.

A similar study a year ago found that CEO bonuses were down 4.5 percent in fiscal 2007 from 2006.

Some companies, such as General Electric Co, have announced they awarded no CEO bonus last year amid declining corporate profits and stock prices. Overall, though, the bonus declines at companies in the study were not as steep as the losses sustained in the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index, which slid 38.5 percent for all of 2008.

U.S. companies are under pressure to restrain CEO pay at a time of economic and stock market turmoil, with President Barack Obama and others criticizing what they see as excessive executive payouts, particularly at financial firms accepting government bailout money.



Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-38427420090309

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Poor things....how are they going to make ends meet? :nopity:

[Xipe Totec]

1. Never mind that, make them give back what they already got

it isn't like they earned it or anything.

[OhioChick]

2. True. n/t

[Catshrink]

3. Guess they'll have to put off buying that new Mercedes for another year.

:cry:

Not.

[bdamomma]

11. and all those other toys they feel that they are entitled to.

[RoccoR5955]

4. Let me know when their "bonus" is to pay us all back, the money they stole! n/t

[GoesTo11]

5. Whoot!

[Alcibiades]

6. Not falling fast enough

But their compensation packages meant that the very most competent people in the world were in charge of American corporations! Their leadership has broken the business cycle and ushered in a new golden age of economic... uh, collapse.

Cut off their bonuses? Well, I guess that's a start.

[raccoon]

8. Right on! nt

[lulubelle1956]

7. Now, Just Increase The Taxes on The Bonuses by 50% or So

and then the CEOs will really "suffer" with only a
one-half million dollar bonus this year.

[DS1]

9. Kinda puts my $500 bonus into perspective

and yes I'm aware I'm lucky to even have that!

*it's just their way of underpaying everyone all year and making us think they care*

**it doesn't work**

[No Elephants]

10. So....only the ones that needed bailing out raised bonuses?

[closeupready]

12. You watch - salaries will rise twofold to more than make up for this.

n/t