CEOs of U.S. defense contractors have pocketed huge amounts of spoils since the beginning of the “war on terror,” and CEOs at top U.S. oil companies are paid excessively more than bigger foreign oil companies, according to a new report by United for a Fair Economy and the Institute for Policy Studies. “Stockholders have to demand accountability with these compensation packages, especially with Department of Defense contractors,” Gary Brouse, with the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, told Sojourners. “They have a responsibility to the stakeholders, which are the taxpayers.”
- $95.2 million: Salary of highest paid U.S. oil industry CEO (William Greehey of Valero Energy) in 2005.
- 4,279 years: Time it would take a construction worker in the oil and gas industry to make Greehey’s salary.
- 518: The number of times more the top 15 U.S. oil CEOs make than average industry workers.
- $984 million: Combined income of the top 34 defense industry CEOs since Sept. 11, 2001—double the amount they received in the four years prior to 9/11.
- 1 million: The number of Iraqis who could have been hired for a year to rebuild their country using the combined salaries of the top 34 defense CEOs.
- 308: The number of times more defense CEOs made than U.S. Army privates in 2005.
Source: “Executive Excess 2006,” by the Institute for Policy Studies and United for a Fair Economy.
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