Top bosses criticised for high bonuses
A report by consultants Hewitt New Bridge Street makes very interesting reading for the UK taxpayer but terrible PR for the U.K.'s top 100 company bosses. The report suggests that the top 100 bosses in UK between them were paid £312.5 million last year despite the fact that the value of the underlying companies as a whole fell by over £400 billion.
It is also claimed that 90% of these remuneration packages consist of bonuses which were paid despite the fact that the value of the companies as a whole fell by over one third. There are also various figures regarding wage rises and the performance of shares which show that over the past six years the average FTSE 100 chief executive's pay has increased by 45% with the market rising by just 7% over the period. While it can be a little misleading to pluck figures from the air there is no doubt that chief executive pay has risen much quicker than inflation, the average wage in the UK and the UK stock market (in the short-term at least).
When you consider that the average FTSE 100 chief executive earned £3.1 million last year compared to £2.6 million for top directors of FTSE 100 companies, it is difficult to argue against calls for tighter regulations regarding remuneration and bonuses in the city. Will this report tempt the UK government to challenge the City highflyers?
Share this..
Related stories
Government lip-service to public sector reform revealed
The Press Association has today issued the details of a research project carried out over the last few weeks into public sector bonuses. In a damning indictment of the UK government's promise to reform the public sector it reveals that almost £130 million has been paid out to civil servants in the UK over the last year. This equates to almost £2.5 million a week on "performance related bonuses"...
Read MoreNumber of house repossessions falls further
13/11/2014 The number of homes being repossessed in the UK has fallen for the third quarter in a row. There were 5,000 homes repossessed in the UK in the third quarter of this year, compared with 5,400 in the second quarter, and 7,200 in the same period of last year. The figures released by the Council of Mortgage lenders (CML) also shows the number of people falling into arrears on mor...
Read MoreBarack Obama gets tough with the US automotive industry
Barack Obama has today administered some harsh medicine to the US automotive industry with a suggestion bankruptcy would be the best option for General Motors and Chrysler. The government appears unwilling to inject more capital into the industry at a time when car sales have fallen off a cliff and both companies are losing significant amount of cash on a daily basis. Indeed the Barack Obama gover...
Read MoreAre you getting the best deal from your bank?
As we have discussed on numerous occasions, the vast majority of the UK public will take all of their financial services from one particular source, i.e. their bank. It seems, despite massive publicity of price comparison sites, that the vast majority of people are still happy to keep their financial affairs under one roof even if ultimately they are losing out. So why do people do this?
Teaching the kids the cost of living
As we have covered on numerous occasions, we teach children how to cook, about religion, maths, english and other vital skills at school but we do not teach them the cost of living and how to budget when they are older. This is one of the major failings of the UK education system, and something which is prominent on the continent as well. We need to teach children the cost of living, how to budget...
Read More