QOTD: Do Automotive Executives Make Too Much?
Automotive News has a story out showing that for automaker bosses who have been in their position for at least two years, median pay has risen 90 percent since 2020.
The story is accompanied by a chart with salary numbers, and some of the numbers are staggering, even knowing that CEOs tend to be extremely well compensated in this day and age.
CEO compensation, of course, comes from more than just base salary -- there are bonuses and incentives and stock options and other forms of pay. But no matter how you slice, the total compensation for these execs is eye-popping.
Feel free to peruse the numbers for yourself. Then come back here and tell us -- do these CEOs make too much money, or are they being paid appropriately to steer the ship?
[Image: Naresh111/Shutterstock.com]
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The real question is - with all the value they add and all the sacrifices they make - do automotive journalists make too little. 😉
I believe anyone, at any level, should get paid as much as the market will bear. Why should CEOs have capped salaries or compensation but middle management shouldn't? If companies support poor CEOs and poor CEOs keep getting rewarded, it's up to the consumer and investors to force that company to either get a better CEO or to reduce the salary of that CEO. What I find hilarious is that consumers will continue to support companies where the pay for the CEOs is very high. And the same people complain. I stopped buying from Amazon during the pandemic. Everyone happily buys from them but the CEO makes bank. Same way with Walmart and many other retailers. Tim Cook got 100m in compensation last year yet people line up to buy Iphones. People who complain and still buy the products must not really care that much.
Ok, John Galt.
We’re a society, we have to set tax policy as a society, and that requires (and amply justifies) deciding how much tax is “enough.” You can play-act the self-reliant individual, but you’ll cry uncle when you encounter the warlords that actually run any place where society doesn’t exist.
I (being a Commissioned Sales Person), have No Issue with a Pay Structure based on Merit. however, Automotive CEO's seem to be beyond that structure. If the Company is doing Good, the pay is Outlandish, if the Company is doing poorly, the pay is Outlandish. There is no Rhyme or Reasoning behind it. Other than Wall Street Performance, which can be manipulated to look Rosey or Dismal throughout the year. Especially when many Manufactures are now only reporting Quarterly Results