Executive Pay Research Paper

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The CEO-employee pay gap is a polarizing topic. High CEO salaries help corporations remain competitive and attract top talent to run their organizations. After all, CEO is a “terminal” position. Most people aim to retire from a CEO position and want to go out on top with a big paycheck; former CEOs seldom go on to hold that title at multiple companies. High salaries can also be viewed as excessive by those inside and outside the company and a point of criticism, especially when some employees live paycheck to paycheck. The question remains though – do high CEO salaries help or harm a company and its employee morale? For industries constantly in the spotlight whenever minimum wage discussions arise such as retail and fast food, the difference is staggering and can have a negative impact. For fast food workers, the pay gap is front of mind. Last year, for example, the CEO of McDonald’s got a performance bonus of $23 million. Meanwhile, the average employee makes $7.25 an hour. For those in the fast food industry working full time and still in need of financial assistance, it is particularly demoralizing to see a CEO walking away with such a big payout. The situation is exacerbated when the company isn’t performing well and the CEO still benefits. …show more content…

Starbucks is one company that has figured out how to strike the right balance with its employees. While some of its employees are paid minimum wage, they lessen the sting of a gap by offering non-cash incentives, such as tuition assistance, benefits, and paid vacation time to improve employee satisfaction. Even though employees aren’t paid high salaries, they feel valued and are happy to be there. The same can be said of Whole Foods. The grocery chain makes an effort to maintain a living wage for all its employees. Employees enjoy non-cash incentives such as maternity leave, work-life balance and

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