CEOs in the News

How Do Workers “Really” Feel About Their CEO’s Pay?

A poll conducted in June and July by online salary information provider Payscale of 22,000 people across different industries and job functions found that 55% didn’t even know what their CEO was paid. That’s likely owing to the fact that many companies aren’t publicly listed and therefore don’t disclose salary details.

But of those workers that did know, just 21% thought their CEO’s pay was excessive. And among those disapproving, 43% said it hadn’t negatively impacted their opinion of the company.

“Among those disapproving, 43% said it hadn’t negatively impacted their opinion of the company.”

Not surprisingly, higher-paid senior employees were more likely to approve.

Workers who made under $25,000 reported a 29% disapproval of their CEO’s pay, although only about a third of them knew what it actually was.

More millennials than generation X or baby boomers felt their CEOs pay negatively affected their view of the company.

“Maybe we’ll see a reduction in the CEO-to-worker pay ratio once these millennials start running things,” Payscale said.

Ross Kelly

Ross Kelly is a London-based business journalist. He has been a staff correspondent or editor at The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo Finance and the Australian Associated Press.

Share
Published by
Ross Kelly

Recent Posts

Building An ‘AI First’ Accounting Powerhouse

Aprio CEO Richard Kopelman on 14 deals in a year, a $300 million AI bet…

17 hours ago

U.S. Manufacturers More Optimistic In May, Despite Continued Volatility

Though volatile pressure continues to temper current business forecasts in the sector, year-ahead manufacturing confidence…

21 hours ago

‘We Will Not Have Stability Again’: Takeaways From The 2026 Manufacturing Leaders Summit In St. Louis

In an era of tariffs, China, AI, margin pressure and continued economic uncertainty the best…

2 days ago

Why Your Company’s Customer Experience Isn’t Working Anymore

Once you commit to a truly customer-centric operation, the path you chart will be very…

2 days ago

The Rebuild That Took Our Family Business From Shutdown To $80 Million

After a decade, we’ve found that distributed teams outperform when the operating infrastructure is right.

2 days ago

Finding Balance During Leadership Transitions

Leadership turnover creates uncertainty fast, especially when employees lose sight of the company’s core values.…

3 days ago