3 ms·

Walmart employs 2,200,000 today. McMillon's total pay is $19,800,000. Per employee, that's $9.

harryh 9y ago
I agree with your top level point about CEO pay not being significant compared to corporate budgets. I'm just saying that companies that employ a lot of people aren't exactly a new phenomenon.
- 11thEarlOfMar 9y ago
  What is material to me is the notion that somehow the wealthy are responsible for the plight of the middle and lower class. In the US, the wealth that some enjoy is a side-effect of the economy's behavior. The economy behaves in the way it was designed* (not saying the designs are sound in all respects, but it is intentionally designed and its behavior reflects that design). I'm not convinced that the income/wealth gap itself is 'the problem'. Therefore, taxing the wealthy at a greater level will not be 'the fix'. What we want is for lower and middle income families to have more disposable income, less financial stress, and overall better quality of life. I believe that the most potent knob to affect that is the number of jobs available. Increasing the number of jobs increases the demand for workers. Increasing demand for workers increases the average pay. We can talk about the quality of the jobs as well, but I believe the primary influence from a macro-economic view is the number of jobs. US unemployment is at a 10 year low[0]. So we should see pay (and inflation) creeping up over the next few years, barring some unforeseen economic disaster, and the lower and middle class will benefit. [0] https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000 https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000 * One illustration that keeps coming to mind: Two investors invest in the same instrument. That instrument returns 10% per year. They hold the investment for 5 years. Investor A invests $10,000 Investor B invests $100,000. At time 0 the 'wealth gap' is $90,000. At 5 years, A's investment is worth $16,100 and B's is worth $161,000. The wealth gap has grown to $145,000. It seems to me that people are making the observation that this gap is increasing, and it is, but in reality, it's a natural manifestation of capitalist economies. We've been in a bull market for 7 years, it's borderline unprecedented, and one observable effect is that the gap in absolute $ between rich and poor is increasing.

I agree with your top level point about CEO pay not being significant compared to corporate budgets. I'm just saying that companies that employ a lot of people aren't exactly a new phenomenon.

11thEarlOfMar 9y ago
What is material to me is the notion that somehow the wealthy are responsible for the plight of the middle and lower class. In the US, the wealth that some enjoy is a side-effect of the economy's behavior. The economy behaves in the way it was designed* (not saying the designs are sound in all respects, but it is intentionally designed and its behavior reflects that design). I'm not convinced that the income/wealth gap itself is 'the problem'. Therefore, taxing the wealthy at a greater level will not be 'the fix'. What we want is for lower and middle income families to have more disposable income, less financial stress, and overall better quality of life. I believe that the most potent knob to affect that is the number of jobs available. Increasing the number of jobs increases the demand for workers. Increasing demand for workers increases the average pay. We can talk about the quality of the jobs as well, but I believe the primary influence from a macro-economic view is the number of jobs. US unemployment is at a 10 year low[0]. So we should see pay (and inflation) creeping up over the next few years, barring some unforeseen economic disaster, and the lower and middle class will benefit. [0] https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000 https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000 * One illustration that keeps coming to mind: Two investors invest in the same instrument. That instrument returns 10% per year. They hold the investment for 5 years. Investor A invests $10,000 Investor B invests $100,000. At time 0 the 'wealth gap' is $90,000. At 5 years, A's investment is worth $16,100 and B's is worth $161,000. The wealth gap has grown to $145,000. It seems to me that people are making the observation that this gap is increasing, and it is, but in reality, it's a natural manifestation of capitalist economies. We've been in a bull market for 7 years, it's borderline unprecedented, and one observable effect is that the gap in absolute $ between rich and poor is increasing.