CEOs make 278 times as much as typical workers: CEO-to-worker compensation ratio, 1965–2018
| Year | CEO-to-worker compensation ratio based on options realized | CEO-to-worker compensation ratio based on options granted |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 19.9 | 15.5 |
| 1966 | 21.1 | 16.3 |
| 1967 | 22.3 | 17.3 |
| 1968 | 23.5 | 18.2 |
| 1969 | 23.2 | 23.2 |
| 1970 | 23.0 | 23.0 |
| 1971 | 22.7 | 22.7 |
| 1972 | 22.4 | 22.4 |
| 1973 | 22.2 | 17.2 |
| 1974 | 23.5 | 23.5 |
| 1975 | 24.9 | 24.9 |
| 1976 | 26.4 | 26.4 |
| 1977 | 28.0 | 28.0 |
| 1978 | 29.7 | 23.1 |
| 1979 | 31.6 | 24.5 |
| 1980 | 33.6 | 26.1 |
| 1981 | 35.7 | 27.7 |
| 1982 | 37.9 | 29.4 |
| 1983 | 40.3 | 31.3 |
| 1984 | 42.9 | 33.2 |
| 1985 | 45.5 | 35.3 |
| 1986 | 48.4 | 37.6 |
| 1987 | 51.5 | 39.9 |
| 1988 | 54.7 | 42.4 |
| 1989 | 58.1 | 45.1 |
| 1990 | 70.4 | 54.6 |
| 1991 | 85.2 | 66.1 |
| 1992 | 103.2 | 80.0 |
| 1993 | 114.4 | 99.3 |
| 1994 | 86.5 | 116.2 |
| 1995 | 120.6 | 129.4 |
| 1996 | 154.1 | 181.4 |
| 1997 | 225.2 | 236.3 |
| 1998 | 294.8 | 293.0 |
| 1999 | 265.6 | 283.8 |
| 2000 | 368.1 | 386.4 |
| 2001 | 210.4 | 321.9 |
| 2002 | 186.4 | 234.7 |
| 2003 | 228.7 | 226.9 |
| 2004 | 265.0 | 234.3 |
| 2005 | 320.1 | 245.1 |
| 2006 | 342.2 | 250.9 |
| 2007 | 345.9 | 241.1 |
| 2008 | 237.8 | 225.3 |
| 2009 | 195.3 | 182.3 |
| 2010 | 225.1 | 203.3 |
| 2011 | 233.0 | 213.5 |
| 2012 | 275.7 | 205.3 |
| 2013 | 290.5 | 211.8 |
| 2014 | 296.4 | 221.4 |
| 2015 | 284.3 | 214.8 |
| 2016 | 262.6 | 209.0 |
| 2017 | 280.8 | 215.7 |
| 2018 | 278.1 | 221.0 |
Notes: CEO average annual compensation is measured for CEOs at the top 350 U.S. firms ranked by sales. Two measures are computed, differing in the treatment of stock options: One uses “options realized,” and the other uses the value of “options granted.” Both series also include salary, bonus, restricted stock awards, and long-term incentive payouts for CEOs. Projected value for 2018 is based on the percent change in CEO pay in the samples available in June 2017 and in June 2018 (labeled first-half [FH] data) applied to the full-year 2017 value. Projections for compensation based on options granted and options realized are calculated separately. “Typical worker” compensation is the average annual compensation of the workers in the key industry of the firms in the sample.
Source: Authors’ analysis of data from Compustat’s ExecuComp database, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Current Employment Statistics data series, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis NIPA tables