I want that job!
A $452,000 annual salary? Appoint me!Members of the new Federal Public Company Accounting Oversight Board voted themselves $452,000 annual salaries recently, citing the need to pay industry-level wages in order to remain competitive and attract top talent. Nay-sayers like Ralph Nader decry this evident greed, pointing out that executive salaries in the private sector are already “above any reasonable assessment of their performance,” and suggesting that folks who work for the public interest would certainly be happy to work at the same salary level as the U.S. President ($400k/year, not counting ‘perks’ like free travel on Air Force One, bodyguards, lifetime pension and a future home-town library).
In spite of such lavish remuneration, these spots have been notoriously tough to fill – apparently at least 2 of the 5 board members must be actual CPAs (i.e. have some appearance of qualifications), and the nominees must be willing to divest themselves of “conflict of interest” engagements and investments before assuming the post. Is that all?
Tags: executive compensation, Federal Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, Ralph Nader, Venality