The difference between the salaries paid to top executives and the median income earned by rank and file employees has been a sore subject for many years and has served as a wedge political issue in recent elections.
The difference between the salaries paid to top executives and the median income earned by rank and file employees has been a sore subject for many years and has served as a wedge political issue in recent elections.
A new rule established by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission now requires public companies to disclose the pay to a chief executive officer relative to the salary paid to the median employee. A recent analysis of pay scales of biotech companies in the Bay State by the Boston Business Journal highlights the difference in the amount top executives are paid in comparison to the median salary. The Journal quickly notes that the median salary for Massachusetts’ biotech employees is more than $100,000 per year. As would be expected though, CEOs receive salaries and total compensation packages worth millions of dollars per year. While Bay State biotech employees are well compensated, according to the report, the pay ratios can be a bit jarring. One prominent biotech in the hotbed of Cambridge, Mass. is about 7 to 1. However, the Journal reported that one medical device company has a ratio of “a whopping 324 to 1.”
In its report the Boston Business Journal used public filings to highlight the pay of the CEO compared to the median employee at 14 prominent companies in the state:
Alnylam – CEO John Maraganore receives $1.4 million and the median employee pay is $200,642, which is a ratio of 7 to 1.
LeMaitre Vascular – CEO George LeMaitre has pay of $889,150, while the median employee pay is $63,594. That works out to a ratio of 14 to 1, the Journal noted.
Tesaro – Lonnie Moulder, CEO of Tesaro, receives $6 million in pay, while the median employee pay is $344,329. That is a ratio of 18 to 1.
Agios Pharmaceuticals – CEO David Schenkein earns a $6 million paycheck. The median salary at the company is $253,115 for a 24 to 1 ratio.
Anika Therapeutics – Charles Sherwood, CEO of Anika, has $4.2 million in salary. The median paycheck at the company is $83,351 for a 51 to 1 ratio.
Alkermes – CEO Richard Pops receives $9.4 million. The median employee pay is $134.639 for a ratio of 70 to 1.
Bioverativ (now part of Sanofi Genzyme) – CEO John Cox brought in a whopping $15.1 million. The median employee pay at the company is $211,121 for a 72 to 1 ratio.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals – Jeff Leiden, CEO of Vertex, receives annual pay of $17.2 million. The median employee pay at Vertex is $211,511 for a ratio of 81 to 1.
Insulet Corp. – CEO Patrick Sullivan earns $8.2 million in annual pay. The median employee pay at Insulet is $94,790, a ratio of 86 to 1.
Waters Corp. – Christopher O’Connell, CEO of Wates Corp., takes home $7.6 million. The median employee pay is $75,696 for a ratio of 100 to 1.
PerkinElmer – CEO Robert Friel has annual pay of $11.4 million. The median employee pay at the company is 56,775 for a ratio of 200 to 1.
Boston Scientific – Michael Mahoney earns $13.1 million for his role as CEO. The median employee salary at the company is $63,696 for a ratio of 205 to 1.
Charles River Laboratories – CEO James Foster has annual pay of $12.6 million, while the median employee salary is $42,040. That works out to a ratio of 299 to 1.
Thermo Fisher Scientific – Marc Casper, CEO of Thermo Fisher, receives annual pay of $22.3 million. The median employee pay at the company is $68,732 – a ratio of 324 to 1.
