- The pay disparity between S&P 500 CEOs and their workers grew even larger in 2021, a new report says.
- The AFL-CIO found this pay ratio was 324-to-1 last year, up from 299-to-1 in 2020.
- Amazon had the biggest CEO-to-worker pay ratio by a mile: 6,474 to 1.
Pay disparities between CEOs and workers at some of the world's biggest companies grew even bigger last year, a new report says.
In 2021, the average S&P 500 CEO made 324 times what their company's average worker made, according to a report published Monday by the AFL-CIO. That's up from 299-to-1 in 2020.
While S&P 500 CEO pay rose 18.2% last year, worker wages only rose 4.7%, the report says. The rate of inflation last year was 7.1%.
These numbers point to what's called "greedflation," the report says.
"CEOs, not working people, are causing inflation," the AFL-CIO wrote. "Runaway CEO pay is a symptom of greedflation — when companies increase prices to boost corporate profits and create windfall payouts for corporate CEOs."
Some of the biggest pay disparities were found at companies where workers are currently pushing for unions for higher wages, among other reasons, including Amazon, Starbucks, and Apple.
Here are the 20 S&P 500 companies identified in the report as having the biggest CEO-to-worker pay ratios:
1. Amazon: 6,474-to-1
CEO Andy Jassy's total compensation last year was $212.7 million.
2. Expedia: 2,897-to-1
CEO Peter Kern's total compensation last year was $296.2 million.
3. McDonald's: 2,251-to-1
CEO Christopher Kempczinski's total compensation last year was $20 million.
4. TJX Cos: 2,249-to-1
CEO Ernie Herrman's total compensation last year was $31.8 million.
The TJX Companies owns businesses like T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods.
5. Yum! Brands: 2,108-to-1
CEO David Gibbs's total compensation last year was $27.6 million.
Yum! Brands owns Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC, and The Habit Burger Grill.
6. Aptiv: 1,992-to-1
CEO Kevin Clark's total compensation last year was $14.7 million.
Aptiv is an automotive technology company.
7. Estée Lauder: 1,965-to-1
CEO Fabrizio Freda's total compensation last year was $66 million.
8. Penn National Gaming: 1,942-to-1
CEO Jay Snowden's total compensation last year was $65.9 million.
Penn National Gaming operates several dozen casinos and racetracks across the US.
9. Coca-Cola: 1,791-to-1
CEO James Quincey's total compensation last year was $24.9 million.
10. Carnival Corp: 1,740-to-1
CEO Arnold Donald's total compensation last year was $15.1 million.
11. Intel: 1,711-to-1
CEO Patrick Gelsinger's total compensation last year was $178.6 million.
12. Bath & Body Works: 1,662-to-1
CEO Andrew Meslow's total compensation last year was $17.7 million.
13. Align Technology: 1,659-to-1
CEO Joseph Hogan's total compensation last year was $21.6 million.
Orthodontics company Align Technology is known for making Invisalign.
14. Starbucks: 1,579-to-1
Then-CEO Kevin Johnson's total compensation last year was $20.4 million.
15. Western Digital: 1,514-to-1
CEO David Goeckeler's total compensation last year was $17.1 million.
Western Digital manufacturers hard disk drives and other storage devices.
16. Under Armour: 1,485-to-1
CEO Patrik Frisk's total compensation last year was $15.5 million.
17. Ross Stores: 1,480-to-1
CEO Barbara Rentler's total compensation last year was $16 million.
18. Apple: 1,447-to-1
CEO Tim Cook's total compensation last year was $98.7 million.
19. FLEETCOR Technologies: 1,404-to-1
CEO Ronald Clarke's total compensation last year was $57.9 million.
Fleetcor offers digital payment services for businesses.
20. Seagate Technology: 1,193-to-1
CEO William Mosley's total compensation last year was $11.6 million.
Seagate makes data storage products.