Obama and his coterie of inept clowns at the WH mess it up again.
""You know, today, women make up about half our workforce, but they still make 77 cents for every dollar a man earns. That is wrong, and in 2014, it's an embarrassment. Women deserve equal pay for equal work.” -- President Barack Obama, State of the Union, January 2014
"Our success should depend not on accident of birth, but the strength of our work ethic and the scope of our dreams. It's how the daughter of a factory worker is CEO of America's largest automaker." -- President Barack Obama, State of the Union, January 2014
In his State of the Union address last week, President Barack Obama applauded the success story of Mary Barra, 52, the new chief executive of General Motors (GM) who sat with First Lady Michelle Obama. Barra became the first female CEO of the global automaker after a 33-year career at GM.
The White House said in a statement that State of the Union guests like Barra who "have been invited to sit with the First Lady represent the stories of millions of Americans across the country, who are working hard to better their communities, improve their own economic outcomes and help restore opportunity for all."
Trouble is, Barra is not even getting 77%, but less than half, 48%, of the pay of GM's outgoing male CEO who had no prior experience running a car company. Barra replaced former Carlyle Group executive Dan Akerson, who ran the automaker after it got a massive $49.5 billion taxpayer bailout. The U.S. Treasury finally sold its remaining stake in GM last December, but at a $10.5 billion loss for U.S. taxpayers. At that time, Akerson said GM should not repay taxpayers the $10.5 billion because "the die was cast" when the Treasury Department opted to take shares in GM instead of giving it more loans.
As it stands now, Barra will get $4.4 million in total compensation, including a base salary of $1.6 million, in 2014, according to GM's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Her pay currently trails outgoing CEO Akerson’s higher 2013 compensation by 52%. He got an estimated $9 million, with a larger $1.7 million base salary and $7.3 million in stock awards.
Even in his current role as an outside senior adviser to GM, Akerson's new $4.68 million compensation would still outstrip Barra's pay package.
Barra’s lower pay also undercuts GM’s statements in its 2013 proxy filed with the SEC, in which the automaker said its executive pay is "based on the tenure, experience and specific responsibilities of the incumbent” executive. Despite paying Barra less, GM blamed Treasury restrictions for not being able to pay Akerson even more when he was CEO, Treasury rules GM complained were "out of step with market practices" (see below).
So, given the fact that Barra has a longer tenure -- 33 years -- at GM, versus Akerson’s zero years of experience in the auto industry, why does GM think Barra’s value as its CEO is currently worth 52% less than Akerson's?
And why didn't anyone at the White House catch this controversy before inviting Barra to sit with the First Lady while the President decried lower pay for women in his State of the Union address?...