Executive Pay

Young activists in Switzerland have plutocrats hyperventilating — and spending a fortune to beat back a ballot initiative that would establish a legal limit on the pay gap between top execs and their workers.

How much did America's top execs make last year? The scorekeepers don't all agree. But that won't matter if we keep our eyes on the most important figure of all: the pay gap between CEOs and workers.

The old robber barons exploited workers and gouged consumers. Today's robber barons are making millions off a new class of victims: average American taxpayers.

Corporations seem to be cutting back on the CEO perks that most inflame public opinion against executive pay excess. But CEOs, even so, have little reason to complain.