Here’s how many people make more than $50 million per year — in wages

There are 205 people in America who earn more than $50 million a year in wages alone.

That’s according to newly released Social Security Administration data for 2017. READ MORE

Wages for the 1% just reached their highest level ever

The 1% has never had it so good.

The average wage for the top 1% of income earners hit $719,000 per year in 2017, up 3.7% on the year, exceeding their peak of $716,000 per year just before the Great Recession, according to a report released Thursday by the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive, nonprofit think tank, citing data from the Social Security Administration. The average wage for the top 0.1% reached $2.7 million in 2017, the second-highest level ever, just 4% below their level in 2007. However, wages for the 0.1% rose 8% on the year in 2017. READ MORE

Some worrying and not so worrying causes of slow wage growth

Last month’s jobs report from the Department of Labor reported that average earnings grew by 2.8 percent over the year ending in August. This is an improvement on wage growth, but subtracting inflation of maybe 2.2 percent from this figure yields wage growth that will double inflation-adjusted take-home pay every 115 years or so. Over the past few years, three explanations have emerged for persistently slower wage growth. They are not mutually exclusive. Let me explain them in turn from benign to very problematic. READ MORE

Unemployment Looks Like 2000 Again. But Wage Growth Doesn’t.

Lots of measures are telling us that the United States labor market is doing well. In some cases, very well. READ MORE

Women lose $513 billion a year in wages due to gender pay gap and math is worse for some

Women experience $513 billion in lost wages a year because of the stubborn pay gap that persists between them and their male peers, according to a new report from the American Association of University Women. READ MORE

Compensation is such a huge issue in 401(k) plans

When I look at plan errors, one major area of a plan keeps coming up: compensation issues. Compensation issues deal with the definition of Compensation in the plan as well as when salary deferrals are dealt with in the plan. READ MORE

What Microsoft's executive compensation metrics say about its priorities

Last week, Microsoft made available its 2018 proxy statement. That document makes for interesting reading for us Microsoft watchers, and not just because it includes the annual executive pay numbers for the company. READ MORE

Do Wages Need to be Paid in Bitcoin for Retail Adoption to Happen?

Is this a case of chicken and egg? If more retailers accepted Bitcoin, would more employees expect their wages paid in Bitcoin? Or, does Bitcoin need to be viewed more widely as a replacement for fiat first?

3 strategies for companies concerned about Amazon wage hike

Many might have to adapt to compete with the internet giant for workers; and prices will go up.  READ MORE

Ex-Wells Fargo broker complaint wins class action status in fight over deferred compensation

A federal judge has granted class action status to a lawsuit brought by a financial adviser who claimed Wells Fargo Advisors cheated him out of $200,000 in deferred compensation. READ MORE

Salary Survey Says More Responsibilities Don’t Equal a Bigger Pay Day

In director-level sales and marketing positions, men still take home more than women. But this year, female audience developers and account executives/content marketing professionals are out-earning their male counterparts and in some instances, are taking home thousands more.  READ MORE

When Employers Demand a Salary Range From Applicants but Refuse to Suggest One

Of all the weird and frankly nonsensical practices that companies use in hiring, probably none are as bizarre as our conventions around negotiating salary. Given that paying employees money in exchange for their labor is what hiring is all about, you’d think that salary would be discussed early, clearly, and directly in any hiring process. But for some reason that approach is more the exception than the rule. Instead, many employers play coy games around salary, hiding what they plan to pay and even taking offense when candidates bring up money. READ MORE

Strong economy has a downside for Main Street: Fewer workers means higher wages

Rod Dion found his business particularly hard hit during the Great Recession. His Albany, New York-based company sells office furniture and provides interior design services — not exactly in high demand while the economy was taking a nosedive. READ MORE

Why Amazon's minimum wage hike was 'inevitable', and others may soon follow in its footsteps

Amazon employees who package your order will soon be getting paid more. But will you be paying more because of it?

On November 1st, Amazon is expected to hike its minimum hourly employee wage to $15. The move will impact 250,000 current employees, plus 100,000 seasonal workers. That rate exceeds the federal rate, which has remained at $7.25 an hour for nearly a decade. READ MORE

CEO compensation and worker pay: 50 companies that owe their employees a raise

The average CEO base salary at a S&P 500 company is over $10 million. With stock options and other benefits, that income nearly doubles. By contrast, an ordinary worker employed full-time in America earns approximately $45,550 annually. READ MORE

'The Crown' star Claire Foy admits she was ‘deeply hurt’ by the series' wage gap

Claire Foy isn’t hiding her feelings about Matt Smith earning more than she did on “The Crown.”

“I was deeply hurt by it,” she told PorterEdit, “because I’d been working on that show for two years. I loved everybody on it. And then I realized, there’s been a big, fat, dirty secret that nobody’s ever talked about.” READ MORE

Almost 50 percent of CEO pay now in stock awards

Stock awards have become a key compensation vehicle used by boards in their efforts to better align pay and performance for the long term, almost entirely replacing stock options. It is one of the main findings from a new report, CEO and Executive Compensation Practices: 2018 Edition, a collaboration by The Conference Board, Gallagher, and MyLogIQ. READ MORE

Why mini performance assessments work better

Performance reviews are valuable for both the employee and the employer. It's a chance for managers to appreciate exceptional work and offer guidance on what could have been done better, and to have an open discussion about the future of the company and the potential for employee growth. READ MORE

The unforeseen problem with $15 an hour

A $15 per hour minimum wage has become a national U.S. rallying cry from workers seeking middle-class security. But while double the current minimum, $15 has its own limitations — and risks uncontemplated social consequences. READ MORE

Certified Tire: Not Your Average Compensation System

In several coordinated wage and hour class actions, technicians working for Certified Tire and Services Centers, Inc. sued for unpaid minimum wages and rest periods. The technicians claimed that Certified Tire’s Technician Compensation Program (“TCP”) was an unlawful “activity-based compensation system” because it failed to pay separately for time spent on repair tasks and for rest periods. The technicians claimed that, under the TCP, Certified Tire improperly sought to “average” the hourly rate to comply with minimum wage requirements. READ MORE