Want to know when I publish the next blog?
You are paid too much
Why...
Have I gone all ‘Jeremy Corbin’ and ‘Bernie Sanders’ on pay? If you set up your own business, gambled everything, worked long hours and against all odds made a success, you deserve every penny; so long as you also appreciate those that helped you. Show me a self made gazillionaire and the quality of his character is not the amount of money he made himself, but the others he made rich along the way. What use he has put surplus cash to is also a good yardstick. Yes, a jet if you must, but not with solid gold loos. But endless spending on self self self shows a deeply insecure narcissist (I am referring to some Rap Artists, Reality Stars, Actors Actresses and the late Leonora Helmsley). CNN and WTBS founder Ted Turner maybe one of the largest landowners in the US and it’s most charismatic entrepreneur, but he gave US $ 1 billion to the UN. I cannot speak for Bill Gate’s business methods but he has at least put his proceeds of Microsoft to good use. What I am finding hard to swallow is the salaries for CEO’s and CFO’s for publicly quoted companies that run into tens of millions a year, even when failing to hit targets and with collapsing share prices. I am a filthy money loving scumbag and admit I like many fine and expensive things. If I have a successful year great. If not, gritted teeth. But had I still been in the corporate world working for an established company, is there not a salary level when you are just taking the piss? Although I expect a CEO to be compensated and also get a bonus tied to performance... surely there is a limit? Take David M. Zaslav - CEO Discovery Inc. Total compensation in 2018, $129.49 million. That seems a bit excessive or the two CEO’s at Oracle at around $108m with stock options. In fact Fortune and Forbes magazines reported recently that some of the highest paid CEO’s were running some of the poorest performing companies. How about Kent Thiry of dialysis chain Davila getting $32m with a negative return of 29% or Art Pack at Gap getting $20.8m when during his four years they had a negative return of 21%. What the hell are the remuneration and compensation committees doing... oh yes. Of course. They are mostly made up of equally overpaid overbearing overlords. I don’t wish to come across as Mary Poppins but this kind of remuneration in a public company comes across as just vulgar!
...and another thing
So when I read that socialist politicians say top rate of tax needs changing, I have some sympathy until they say utterly daft things that (in UK) they want top rate to start at £80,000. They are so out of touch with reality they could come from the planet Zorg; let alone care to admit that 2,441 Councillors (many of which are Labour) are paid over £100,000 a year!
No no no. Have a serious tax rate at over £10m a year for employees. That’s who the man in the street wants to see hammered. How can you possibly say someone earning £80,000 pays same rate as someone earning £81m, let alone think that £80,000 constitutes a salary worthy of top rate of tax.
...and another thing
Yup, I’m going to start singing ‘We’ll keep the red flag flying here’ as I am also pissed at monoliths like Amazon not paying a decent amount of corporation tax.
The UK reported that on sales of £10billion they paid less than 2% tax. Come on guys. You deserve success for the way you have changed the retail landscape, especially for places away from the big Metropolis. Living in the boonies is now bearable by being able to have next day delivery of a vicuña codpiece or a golden tummy button brush. But why push it? You have decimated the high street. Let’s at least play on an even tax playing field, even if the overheads are not!
Tax should be fair but not discourage enterprise. On the other hand, remuneration is a mix of risk and reward. A salaried employee, no matter how lofty, is simply not in the same realm as the self made man/woman.
So in summary the only thing we should all overpay are compliments.
Share:
One Comment
Inspiration is back…! Hurray ! And funny enough I was thinking the same…, and could not have written better or describe the way many of us think…