CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratio
The CEO-to-worker compensation ratio at large US firms grew from about 20-to-1 in 1965 to roughly 250-to-350-to-1 by recent measures.
Overview
Economic Policy Institute tracking uses realized compensation, stock cashed out, and finds the ratio near 290-to-1 in recent years for the largest firms, versus about 20-to-1 in 1965. Alternative grant-date measures run lower but tell the same story: stock-market-driven equity awards did most of the widening. Since 2018, SEC rules force public companies to publish the ratio of CEO pay to the median employee's, producing an annual league table. International peers run far lower ratios. Figures are approximate research series.
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