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Across the United States, median full-time salaries vary widely depending on the state. From booming coastal economies to regions with lower costs of living, geographic differences play a major role in shaping income levels.
This visualization maps out the median full-time salary by state in 2024 using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, the latest data available as of September 2025. READ MORE
Excessive levels of executive pay are headline news and have become a focal point of public scrutiny and academic debate. The wide – and increasing – ratio between executives’ and workers’ pay raises questions about corporate ethics, fairness, and societal impact. Yet executive pay decision-makers report on significant challenges in translating ethical principles into practice and perceived unfairness in executive rewards persists. Dr Sue Shortland reports on recent research.
In their academic paper “Bridging Theory and Practice: Ethical Governance of Executive Compensation in the Financial Times Stock Exchange 100”*, published earlier this year Perkins and Shortland report that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)-to-worker pay ratio stood at 324:1 among Standard and Poor’s 500 companies in 2022, up from 61:1 in 1989. Not only is the differential considered to be egregious but it continues to increase. READ MORE
Elon Musk addressed the pay debate directly on X after a user urged shareholders to back the proposal. He said, “It’s not about ‘compensation,’ but about me having enough influence over Tesla to ensure safety if we build millions of robots.” He added, “If I can just get kicked out in the future by activist shareholder advisory firms who don’t even own Tesla shares themselves, I’m not comfortable with that future.” READ MORE
With companies increasingly dropping environmental, social and governance (ESG) and diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) factors from their executive pay plans, there’s sharp disagreement between investors and issuers as to how these kinds of changes should be viewed by proxy advisory firms, according to the latest voting policy survey from ISS Governance.
The firm published the results of its latest annual global benchmark policy survey, which it uses to help craft its voting policies for the upcoming proxy season. READ MORE
Chief Executive Group just released the 2025–26 CEO & Senior Executive Compensation Report for Private U.S. Companies, the most trusted annual benchmarking resource for executive compensation across privately held businesses in the U.S.
In this latest edition, data shows that actual bonus payouts as a percentage of base salary have been lagging for CEOs since coming out of COVID and the trend seems to be here to stay. The study finds that for the first time in four years, the bonus target for the CEO has fallen, while base salary increases are hardly keeping up with inflation. READ MORE
In a post shared on the social media platform X on Monday, the company urged its shareholders and investors to vote in support of the Board. "Our next chapter will help create a world we've only begun to imagine & put the world on a path towards sustainable abundance for all," referring to the Master Plan IV released by the company, which focuses heavily on Robotics and AI.
"We are asking shareholders to vote with our Board's recommendations on *all* proposals," the company said and added guidance on how they can vote during the process. READ MORE
Equity compensation is far more than a workplace perk for employees at firms offering this benefit. According to a new survey from Charles Schwab of stock plan participants, three-quarters (76%) say equity compensation is very important, and nearly half consider it a “must-have” benefit when evaluating a new job. Half view equity compensation as a critical tool to help achieve retirement goals, and many say it will help them build/increase wealth (38%), learn more about investing (37%), alleviate financial stress (32%), and boost employee morale (32%). Participants say company stock makes up about one-third of their overall investment portfolios on average. READ MORE
The relationship between employee compensation, recognition, and an organization's culture of compliance is increasingly under scrutiny. Regulators, stakeholders and boards are recognizing that how employees are paid, rewarded and potentially penalized can significantly influence behavior.
Effectively integrating compliance considerations into compensation structures requires an integrated approach, encompassing mechanisms to penalize wrongdoing and strategies to proactively incentivize ethical behavior and adherence to
compliance norms.
Effectively integrating compliance considerations into compensation structures requires an integrated approach, encompassing mechanisms to penalize wrongdoing and strategies to proactively incentivize ethical behavior and adherence to compliance norms. READ MORE
A recent survey has found that budgets for employee compensation in 2026 are projected to be about on par with where they were this year—and ongoing economic uncertainty could be keeping compensation investments flat.
Mercer’s U.S. Compensation Planning survey found that employers plan to boost their compensation budgets by 3.1% for merit increases and 3.5% for total salary increases for non-unionized employees. That’s consistent with 2025, as employers have delivered actual merit and total salary increases of 3.2% and 3.5%, respectively. READ MORE
Deloitte’s 2018 High-Impact Total Rewards study revealed a great deal of room for improvement within the world of rewards. The Net Promoter Score (NPS) for rewards at the time was an abysmal negative-15, and rewards offerings were actually hurting organizations’ employment brand. Recognition, in particular, was largely untapped. It’s human nature to seek acknowledgement for a job well done, but the status quo for recognition programs rarely rose above common and routine activities like service anniversaries. Only 2% of surveyed organizations considered recognition to be a competitive differentiator, and 31% did not consider recognition to be a differentiator at all. READ MORE
In the U.S., the connection between education and income is stark, with higher education leading to higher median earnings consistently.
This visualization highlights how median annual salaries change at each successive level of educational attainment in the United States, using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for 2024. READ MORE
Americans’ belief in the necessity of a college degree has dropped sharply over the past decade. Only about one in three U.S. adults now say higher education is "very important," down from three-quarters in 2010, according to a new Gallup poll.
Yet Census Bureau data shows that college still pays off in significant ways, with median earnings for degree holders nearly double those of high school graduates. READ MORE
Today, Bank of America announced it has raised its U.S. minimum hourly wage to $25 per hour. With the increase, the minimum annualized salary for full-time employees in the U.S. will rise to more than $50,000. The increase, which goes into effect in early October, applies to all full-time and part-time hourly positions in the U.S., affecting thousands of employees across the nation and helping to fuel the growth of the American economy and create job opportunities that strengthen the communities the company serves. READ MORE
As the first female CEO of FOX News, Suzanne Scott is thought to take home seven figures as the senior face of the broadcasting company.
Fox News, which is currently under fire from President Trump, began in 1996 with Scott joining at the very beginning. Rising through the ranks, Suzanne took over as the network's CEO from late Roger Ailes in 2018. Ailes resigned in 2016 amid sexual harassment allegations. READ MORE
The basic objectives of executive compensation have been the same since the rise of large companies in the late 19th century: provide strong incentives to increase shareholder value, retain key talent and limit shareholder cost. What’s changed over time is the dominant approach to achieving these objectives. In the first half of the 20th century, companies relied heavily on fixed sharing to achieve the three objectives. Since then, public companies have shifted their focus from fixed sharing to competitive pay in the labor market. READ MORE
Tesla's $1 trillion pay deal for Elon Musk has triggered the same skepticism that greeted his ambitious 2018 pay deal, tech investor Eric Schiffer has said.
In a wide-ranging interview with Business Insider, the CEO of private-equity firm the Patriarch Organization said Musk's previous deal also tied a "mammoth" payout to extremely challenging goals. READ MORE
“Pay is personal.” It’s a mantra every manager in your organization should repeat when going into a pay conversation with an employee. There are aspects of pay that might be unrelated to work, and a manager should be prepared for anything. It’s exactly why being prepared with data and facts can turn pay conversations from emotional to meaningful. READ MORE
If you’re setting your sights on a big pay raise next year, you may want to temper your expectations.
Most employers plan to notch up salaries by an average of 3.4% in 2026 — on par with this year’s reported increases, according to a new survey from The Conference Board.
“Today’s labor market is one of reorientation, not retreat,” Mitchell Barnes, an economist at The Conference Board, told Yahoo Finance. “Employers anticipate steady compensation growth in 2026, but the underlying mix suggests some companies are scaling back, including signing and retention bonuses.” READ MORE
When one is looking for a high-paying job, others typically suggest career fields such as medicine, tech, finance, etc. However, there are many jobs out there that pay well without people realizing it... READ MORE
Choosing a college major is a big decision, and while passion matters, so does having a paycheck to help pay off the student loans you take out along the way.
A 2025 analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows some fields can lead to starting salaries of $80,000 or more, while others offer steady career growth and lower unemployment.1 Whether you’re aiming for top dollar or a career you love, knowing your earning potential can help you make a smarter choice. READ MORE
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