CEOs Make WAY More Than ANYBODY Thinks

"Rumblings of discontent about executive wages, the 1 Percent, and wealth gaps know no borders. And neither does fierce debate about income inequality in general. But until now, it's been relatively unclear how much people think CEOs should really make compared to other workers on a global scale.

In their recent research, scheduled to be published in a forthcoming issue Perspectives on Psychological Science, Chulalongkorn University's Sorapop Kiatpongsan and Harvard Business School's Michael Norton investigate "what size gaps people desire" and whether those gaps are at all consistent among people from different countries and backgrounds.

It turns out that most people, regardless of nationality or set of beliefs, share similar sentiments about how much CEOs should be paid -- and, for the most part, these estimates are markedly lower than the amounts company leaders actually earn."* The Young Turks hosts Ana Kasparian, Ben Mankiewicz (Turner Classic Movies) and John Iadarola (TYT University) break it down.

*Read more here from Gretchen Gavett / The Huffington Post:

[DrHN]

When the body was first made, all the parts wanted to be Boss.

The brain said, “I should be boss because I control the whole body’s responses and functions.”

The feet said, “We should be Boss as we carry the brain about and get him to where he wants to go.”

The hands said, “We should be the boss because we do all the work and earn all the money.”

And so it went on and on with the heart, the lungs, and the eyes until finally the asshole spoke up. All the parts laughed at the idea of the asshole being the Boss. So the asshole went on strike, blocked itself up and refused to work.

Within a short time the eyes became crossed, the hands clenched, the feet twitched, the heart and lungs began to panic and the brain fevered. Eventually they all decided that the asshole should be the boss, so the motion was passed. All the other parts did all the work while the boss just sat and passed out the shit!

Moral of the story: You don’t need brains to be a boss – any asshole will do.

[rosejohnsonTao]

CEO's should pocket just as much as we, the workers do. 

[Halderic]

I will never understand the asinine reasons for not increasing the minimum wage.  It's not like people will stuff all that extra money under their mattress, they will spend it on items which will help stimulate the economy.  

[BrotherAlpha]

I think 10 to one would be fine. Hell, make it 20 to one. The average working makes $50, 000 per year, while the average CEO makes $1 million.

[felicity]

IIRC there was some Scandanavian country where there was a law that CEOs could only make 15 times what their lowest-paid workers made. This did not stop CEOs from making a maximum wage; the lowest-paid workers got raises so the CEOs could make more.

[bigdogpc]

People who justify CEO's salaries say it's an incentive for them to work harder, somehow that same justification doesn't apply to entry level workers when it comes to raising the minimum wage.

[jdc]

CEO- the head publicly traded country. Is a very hard skilled worker, one crucial mistake will destroy a company, most likely many years of higher learning.

Unskilled worker- would you like frys with that.

My guess is that being a CEO is at least 350 times harder then do you want mac sauce on your burger.

[BigTurboTrucker]

there's actually a CEO of some airline that only makes $81, 000 a year by choice, and also takes public transit to work. his pilots make several times more then he does!

[GrandTourer]

Let's be happy for the ceo's that they're so wealthy :) they make whatever the market lets them, so there's nothing wrong with being a lot richer than someone else.

[tocoki]

So, The Young Turks, are you trying to convince me that in the event CEOs (en masse) started earning less money that my life would improve? Are you trying to convince me that my path to happiness lies in the hands of others? Is that what you guys are selling?

[flake]

If the shareholders approve then thats all that matters, they are the only people who should get a vote its their money.

[sorenk]

How do you expect to cut a CEOs wages?

[bruceleeroy]

The argument against raising the minimum wage is that it is just a temporary position for high school students.  It's too bad that single mothers often get paid this wage as well.  They key is to set yourself up to be successful by not living beyond your means or taking on anything you cannot handle.  It's easier said than done and I hate to judge people in these situations.

[treveonmaxwell]

Life on minimum wage.
Here's some quick math for you all who think minimum is fair.
Federal minimum 7.25
Lets assume 40 a week even though you would be LUCKY to get that. 7.25 x 40 = 290.00 a week.
Taxes are about 23% last time I checked, probably more now so
290 x .23 =66.70
223.3 after taxes.
Rent for a studio will run you about 400 a month. MAYBE 350 if you are in the Midwest. But remember you have to make 3x the rent at most apartments so....400 x 3 = 1200...oops. but lets ignore that too.

You have to pay for electricity, thats about 60 - 100 bucks if you watch your usage carefully and don't live in a pricejacked area.

You need about 200 for food a month to be healthy.

You don't have a car on minimum cause insurance and gas cost too much, so do the YEARLY PROPERTY TAXES FOR YOUR CAR and registration, repairs etc.
In orlando where I am now, a bus pass is 60 a month I think and lets assume you would spend about 100 on toiletries a month, that's probably a bit much but women buy makeup sometimes and men buy cologne etc.
So about 750 to 800 a month in expenses, keep in mind that these were rounded alot and approximates...most of the time people have to pay more not to mention stuff like emergencies.
933.2 - 800 = 133.20 left. ...

NOW about that 40 a week...most workers don't get 40, they really get 25 - 30. That is a BIG drop in expected income. Can you survive with less than 800 a month on your own? Do it for a year, and don't dare to get on ANY public assistance. You will learn with your flesh why minimum wage isn't right.

Note, I didn't enumerate employers who steal wages, bogus fines fron police encounters, hospital visits, lost wages etc. I didn't go into perfect detail because I don't really need to. Just this should get my point across.

[mitsterful]

imagine if every corporation in the world, just gave up a day's profit, and gave it to charity or something, imagine what a difference that'd make

[LizNguyen]

I like Japan's number, but only 7 times more? I think that's way too low.

[fjoo]

who cares what the CEOs make, as long as they pay their taxes.
It all comes out of the stockholder's profits, so they get to choose what to spend it on.

That being said, a minimum wage is needed.

[thefrozengargon]

I went to a pretty nice highschool. An impressive salary from most of the kids parents, the ones who were considered rich were pulling in around 600K a year. (Both parents combined).

Turns out my buddy, who dressed like normal, was humble as hell, and never spoke of money.... had a dad that was a CEO that made 10 million a year. I honestly could not process it.

There is rich, and then there is that.

[mrjonnewman]

CEO's should be paid less than workers. CEO's leech off workers who do all the work.

[williamnguyen]

I'm not questioning the fact ceos should get paid more but this is overkill