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U.S. labor costs rose marginally in the fourth quarter, offering some comfort to Federal Reserve officials after progress lowering inflation stalled at the end of 2024.
The employment cost index (ECI), the broadest measure of labor costs, gained 0.9% last quarter after rising 0.8% in the third quarter, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Friday. READ MORE
More than three-quarters of companies in the S&P 500 incorporate environmental, social & governance (ESG) performance measures into their executive incentive plans, according to 2024 disclosures, up from two-thirds in 2021. This report analyzes the focus areas and methods of integration of ESG metrics into performance measurement across both the S&P 500 and the Russell 3000. READ MORE
Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis recently announced voting policy guidelines updates for 2025. We spoke to Shaun Bisman, partner at Compensation Advisory Partners about the most significant impacts for boards and compensation committees. READ MORE
On December 13, 2024, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) issued updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) related to its U.S. Executive Compensation Policies effective for shareholder meetings occurring on or after February 1, 2025. Notable updates are summarized below. READ MORE
Amid low unemployment levels and a growing skills gap, employers are retooling their compensation and benefits strategy to attract and retain workers. In 2025, compensation budgets are expected to remain above historical trends, and benefits will become even more personalized, experts say.
Josh Bersin, CEO of human capital advisory firm The Josh Bersin Co., said companies will need to ask themselves what deal they offer to workers and how their employee experience compares in the battle for talent. READ MORE
Recently, Institutional Shareholder Services (“ISS”) released updates to its voting policies for 2025, including new and updated responses to its Compensation Policies FAQs and new Value-Adjusted Burn Rate Benchmarks (based on company size and industry) in its Equity Compensation Plans FAQs. These updates follow the off-cycle update that ISS announced for its Compensation Policies FAQs this past October, which we reported on here. Similarly, Glass Lewis (“GL”) also recently released its annual Benchmark Policy Guidelines for 2025. Consistent with the last few years, this year’s updates by ISS and GL reflect incremental, rather than transformational, changes to their respective policies relating to compensation practices. READ MORE
In today’s competitive job market, employers that want to attract and retain top talent must design compensation packages that are appealing and fair across all levels of the company. However, these pay structures also need to align with organizational needs and budgets.
To help HR leaders and their teams strike this balance, the members of Forbes Human Resources Council share their top tips for designing equitable and competitive compensation packages. From researching market pricing and trends to exploring benefits beyond salary, these strategies can set your organization apart while fostering fairness and inclusivity. READ MORE
Did you read that right, $186,000? Yes, that precise figure is not a mistake. That's the average salary Americans say they need to earn to feel financially comfortable, per a recent poll conducted by Bankrate. The survey explored the sentiments of varying demographics of American workers, covering Gen Zers, to Gen Xers, to Black Americans, to Hispanics, to Westerners, to those making under $50,000 or $100,000 or more, and everyone in between. READ MORE
A majority, 56% of U.S. workers are looking for a new job or plan to in 2025, according to an October 2024 Resume Templates survey of 1,258 U.S. workers. Their reasons vary: 37% feel undervalued, another 37% feel burned out and 40% cite low pay.
If you, too, are hoping to get a pay bump in 2025 but not necessarily looking to leave your job, you can still try to negotiate for a higher salary where you currently work. READ MORE
It’s not your imagination—CEO compensation has significantly outpaced average worker salaries over the years.
The pay for chief executives at major companies in the United States increased by an astonishing 1,085% from 1978 to 2023, while the typical worker's earnings rose by only 24%, as reported by the Economic Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank. READ MORE
How can a director determine when CEO pay is excessive? READ MORE
Employers recognize the need to invest in their workers to improve retention, given the tight labor market and low levels of unemployment, Lauren Mason, Mercer’s U.S. workforce solutions leader, said in a statement.
“To remain competitive in this environment, employers will need to look beyond compensation and transform work itself to improve the employee experience and unlock greater productivity,” Mason said. READ MORE
More than 1 million people across the country earn paychecks of $500,000 or higher, according to a report that analyzed payroll records on millions of salaries paid over the course of a year.
The study titled "High-paying jobs? They’re a dime a dozen," which was done by ADP, a leading management company that provides payroll and other services, concluded that “a substantial number of professionals found in every major metro” earn more than half a million dollars annually. Government data, including the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, typically obscure the prevalence of hefty paychecks by capping the level of wages reported. READ MORE
Welcome to 2024, where some people are somehow angry at Taylor Swift for "only" giving nearly $200 MILLION in bonuses to her touring staff and crew this past week.
As I reported earlier this week, Swift graciously gave massive bonuses to each and every single one of her crew members both last year and this year as a thank-you. We're not talking about just those that are on stage with her, but those that literally are the ones that made the Eras Tour happen and be such the massive success that it was - even the truck drivers received a surprise $100,000 check from Swift! READ MORE
The Financial Accounting Standards Board has moved forward with a significant change that will require public companies to disclose more granular details about their employee compensation packages, including incentive compensation, in financial reports.
The new accounting standard will fundamentally change how businesses track and report compensation, especially in areas like bonuses, commissions, and other variable pay structures. While this change aims to bring more transparency, it highlights a glaring issue: many companies don’t fully understand the true cost or return on investment of incentive compensation, and have no way to properly measure or report on their programs’ business impact. READ MORE
Soon after Kay took on a new role at an e-commerce company in the fall of 2023, the responsibilities began to pile up.
Kay – who asked USA TODAY to not use her full name for fear of losing her job – was originally told she would oversee customer service agents as a team lead. But with the rapid advancements in AI chatbots like ChatGPT, her job shifted to a high-stakes position focused on automating customer support. READ MORE
A federal district court in Texas has blocked a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) final rule that would have increased the salary thresholds for certain exempt employees on January 1, 2025. As a result, the rule —and its accompanying threshold increases — will no longer go into effect, and the salary threshold increase that took effect on July 1, 2024, has been undone. For employers already dealing with a host of new laws taking effect in 2025, the decision may bring some relief, along with uncertainty of what to do with the changes they may have already made. READ MORE
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has recently faced another legal setback regarding his massive compensation plan. Judge Kathaleen St. J. McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery upheld her previous decision from January to cancel the $56 billion package awarded in 2018. Despite a second shareholder vote in June to reinstate it, the judge ruled that the initial process was “deeply flawed” and that the subsequent vote did not rectify these issues. READ MORE
More companies are ditching diversity, equity, and inclusion metrics to help determine their executives’ compensation amid a conservative backlash against corporate DEI programs.
The pullback, however, doesn’t mean the popular tie-in has been abandoned. In fact, a majority of S&P 500 companies and more than 40% of Russell 3000 firms that use environmental, social, and governance metrics in executive pay still link compensation to achieving DEI goals, according to a report the Conference Board, ESGAUGE, and FW Cook released Thursday. READ MORE
West Virginia University research shows the stock market shapes chief executive officers’ commitments to innovation through mechanisms that range from CEO pay packages to feedback from financial analysts.
“The investment industry usually views financial analysts’ feedback, such as earnings forecasts, as impeding innovation because of the pressure the feedback puts on CEOs,” said Xinchun Wang, associate professor of marketing at the WVU John Chambers College of Business and Economics. “But not all feedback provided by analysts generates that kind of pressure. Stock recommendations actually foster explorative activities like research and development — investments that, although risky, can positively affect long-term returns.” READ MORE