Running head: What’s Wrong
What’s Wrong with CEO Pay? An Examination of CEO Pay in Relation to Fairness, Ethics, and the Economy
Abstract
In recent years, after the scandals of large corporations such as Enron, the public and leaders have criticized large CEO pay. This paper examines whether CEO pay is fair and ethical in light of the economy, how CEO pay relates to business performance, and how CEO pay compares to the average worker’s pay. This paper also investigates some proposed public policy solutions to large CEO pay. The research indicates that supply and demand forces dictate what CEO pay should be. Also, CEO pay has been increasing proportionally to the value of American businesses. CEO pay is unfair when it is compared to the average worker’s pay. Public policy should not try to decrease CEO pay but instead try to decrease the gap between CEO pay and the average worker’s pay by increasing education among workers and increasing the minimum wage. New regulations that make CEO pay more transparent to shareholders than before do not necessarily achieve the purpose for which they were designed.
Table of Contents
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………2
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………..4
What makes CEO pay unethical or unfair?..........................................................................4
CEO pay and economical forces…………………………………………………..5
Graph 1…………………………………………………………………….5
Graph 2…………………………………………………………………….6
CEO pay and business…………………………………………………………….7
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