The Fortunate 2,500 of the Fortune 500

Jerry Goldberg, CPA releases his 6th annual compensation survey of the 2,500 nam
ed executive officers of the companies of the Fortune 500.
Bellmore, NY, October 02, 2010 -- With exorbitant compensation always on the min
ds of shareholders, Jerry Goldberg, CPA has prepared his 6th annual list of the
top 2,500 executive positions of the Fortune 500.
Goldberg reports a drop in company and CEO compensation in 2009.
Aside from confirming the average CEO’s compensation in 2009 was $9.9 million, a d
ecrease of 4.4 percent from 2008, Goldberg details the additional executive comp
ensation received by other senior executives on the management team. “All public
companies have at least four other executives who report to the CEO. Many of the
se executives are also handsomely paid,” said Goldberg. “With greater amounts going
to the executives, there is less to go to shareholders and other employees,” state
d Goldberg.
“I have prepared a list of the top 2,500 top executive positions of the Fortune 5
00 companies, and what they are paid. I call the list “The Fortunate 2,500 of The
Fortune 500.” The total compensation paid to the “Fortunate 2,500” in 2009 was $11.4
billion or an average of $4.8 million per executive. This was a decrease of 2%
from 2008 when average executive compensation of that group was $4.9 million,” st
ated Goldberg.
Why is this important?
For shareholders
As more profits accrue to the top executives, there is less left over for the sh
areholders in the form of dividends, or earnings per share.
For employees
The inflation-adjusted pay of the average worker in the United States has stagna
ted over the past two decades. Twenty years ago, the ratio of CEO pay to the av
erage worker pay was approximately 11:1. The ratio in 2009 was a whopping 162:1.
This is clearly out of line.
For society
Money is “Power.” Not only does it buy goods and services but also political influen
ce. Too much wealth has accrued to too few people, an unhealthy society where o
ne class of workers can become an aristocracy at the expense of everyone else.
For the companies themselves
Without tighter controls over risk-taking and corporate greed, the companies the
mselves may cease to exist.
What can be done?
Goldberg provides commentary that includes a Hall of Fame for the top ten highes
t paid CEO’s, the top ten companies with the highest paid executives and the top t
en women CEOs. See why all this is important to the public and what can be done
to get things back into a reasonable balance. All information can be found at jg
fortunate2500list.com.
Contact:
Jerry Goldberg, CPA
jgfortunate2500list
255 Executive Drive
Plainview, NY 11803
516-376-7534
jerlaurie2@yahoo.com
http://www.jgfortunate2500list.com