The Center for Union Facts found in its own analysis Friday that many union presidents hammer the corporate wage gap, but still make more money than the average CEO.
The AFL-CIO found the average CEO of a S&P 500 company Tuesday made 335 times more money than the average worker in 2015. Union Facts countered the analysis, highlighting that S&P 500 companies tend to be among the largest. Instead, when all CEOs are taken into account, union presidents often get paid more.
“Dozens of union bosses rake in cushy six-figure salaries on the workers’ dime,” Union Facts Executive Director Richard Berman told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “Many of them make more than CEOs. And they spend member dues — still mandatory in many states — on a host of luxuries, from $160 dinners and luxury wines to pricey limousine services.”
The union report found the average president of a S&P 500 company made $12.4 million last year. The report aimed at highlighting an ever growing wage gap between corporate elites and everyday workers. Union Facts found in its own analysis that the top 153 union presidents made more than the average CEO in gross annual salary.
“The income inequality that exists in this country is a disgrace,” AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said in a statement. “It’s shameful that a CEO can make that type of money and still destroy the livelihood of the hard-working people who make the company profitable.”
Union Facts looked at federal data to determine the average chief executive made $185,850 in 2015. Nevertheless the top corporate presidents still make significantly more than the the best paid union officials. The issue is that unions have consistently denounced the corporate wage gap while having a considerable pay difference themselves.
The union analysis details a lot about corporate wages but completely leaves out what union officials are paid. Union Facts adds its analysis doesn’t even take into account other union officials like secretary-treasurers, vice presidents and business managers who often collect huge wages as well.
Union presidents also collect a lot of money through compulsory dues. In states without right-to-work protections a union can require workers to pay dues or fees whether they want to or not. Right-to-work outlaws mandatory union dues or fees as a condition of employment. The policy has passed in 26 states with West Virginia being the latest.
The AFL-CIO has released an annual report on corporate wages for the last few years as part of its corporate watch website. The annual report also looks at corporate wages by states and industries plus who is dodging taxes. The union has urged lawmakers to make it easier for people to lookup corporate pay which is already publicly available through disclosure reports.
The AFL-CIO did not respond to a request for comment by TheDCNF.
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