In today’s “Heard it On the Street” Column of the Wall Street Journal, it was leaked (most likely by a disgruntled employee) that an e-mail to all employees proudly announced “bonuses” to 50 “stars” of Live Nation. The bonus was… brace yourself… a whopping $250 per star. No, I didn’t leave out any digits. That’s a whopping total of $12,500 in bonuses. Wow. How generous (read dripping sarcasm) of CEO Michael Rapino and Chairman Irving Azoff. These guys take in a cool twenty million or so apiece and give a lucky 50 employees an extra $250.
Sadly it’s a sign of the times. The guys at the top get richer — a lot richer — while everyone else struggles on the crumbs (in this case $250). $20 million versus $250, a ratio of 80,000:1. Just about what you’d expect.
If I were a shareholder, I would l be plenty angry. Where is the Board of Directors? Are they independent enough to stand up to senior management? Obviously not. Like most corporations, the Board is captive and beholden to management. That must change before executive compensation will be addressed objectively and fairly.