By: Sara Sindelar
Everyone wants to be rewarded for their hard work but there is a line that does not need to be crossed. It was no surprise that C-suite level executives are treated very well but after the recession started more details were given out. I do not think you can find many people that will agree with the amount in bonuses and the VIP treatment that corporate executives get.
“Regulators have claimed that BofA had said in its proxy statement that it would not pay out bonuses to Merrill employees in fiscal year 2008, when, in fact, the bank authorized bonus payments of as much as $5.8 billion. Of that allowance, $3.6 billion was paid out in 2008 to more than 39,000 Merrill employees.” (CNN Money)”
This week in court discussions on how the banks, Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, should be punished for going against what their proxy statement promised. There are questions being thrown around about who is to blame about the pay out. No matter who signed the checks it is still wrong that so many corporate executives are gaining so much money especially during this recession. Even though the government is making strides to cut down corporate spending it will still happen and more needs to be done in order to control unnecessary spending by corporations. Hopefully there will be consequences for this pay out of bonuses in court.
References:
http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/08/25/sec_bank_defend_bonus_settlement/
http://money.cnn.com/2009/09/09/news/companies/bofa_sec/index.htm?postversion=2009091015
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123750034629289161.html
I think this article makes some valid points. This is a matter that I have heard discussed quite often. Should everyone suffer during a recession? What happens when you don't keep your employees happy? But also do they really need these million dollar bonuses, when people are fighting to keep their jobs to feed their families? Good discussion article.
ReplyDelete-Meredith Anderson