From 1978 to 2022, CEO pay grew by 1,209% while the typical worker's pay rose just 15%.
This explosion in CEO pay relative to the pay of average workers isn’t because CEOs have become so much more valuable than before.
They've just gamed the system to line their pockets.
As for gaming the system, I understand from a talk by Daniel Markovits that senior executives have used automation to siphon work away from middle managers, justifying less money for them and more money for the siphoners. It’s one reason people at the top burn themselves to crisps. But I have yet to read “The Meritocracy Trap” to get the full story.
I downloaded “The Meritocracy Trap” audiobook from the library and listened to it. Then I listened to it a second time, because it is so well written and so concentrated with insight. Now I’m bummed that Markowitz appears to have returned to his day job as a law professor and nobody has picked up his work. It explains so much about wealth inequality and extractive capitalism.
Robert Reich
Patrick Gillam