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Top 10 Highest-Paid CEOs in North Carolina

Jeremy Sprinkle
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More for them, less for us

In 2016, CEOs of S&P 500 Index companies received, on average, $13.1 million in total compensation, according to the AFL-CIO’s analysis of available data. In contrast, production and nonsupervisory workers earned only $37,632, on average, in 2016—a CEO-to-worker pay ratio of347 to 1.

Here are the top ten highest-paid CEOs of S&P 500 companies in North Carolina.

RankTickerCompanyCEOYearCompensation
1VFCV.F. CorporationEric C. Wiseman2016$16,299,996
2BACBank of America CorporationBrian T. Moynihan2016$15,940,132
3SEESealed Air CorporationJerome A. Peribere2016$14,809,624
4DUKDuke Energy CorporationLynn J. Good2016$13,793,594
5RAIReynolds AmericanSusan M. Cameron2015$13,448,538
6LOWLowe's CompaniesRobert A. Niblock2015$13,155,164
7RHTRed HatJames M. Whitehurst2016$12,725,594
8BBTBB&T CorporationKelly S. King2016$11,610,083
9LHLaboratory Corporation of America HoldingsDavid P. King2016$10,853,497
10NUENucor CorporationJohn J. Ferriola2016$10,627,499

Corporate tax avoiders

Corporations like to complain that their federal income tax rates are too high. But lost amid the clamor to cut taxes for corporations is the fact that many U.S. corporations are not paying taxes on their offshore profits. By “permanently reinvesting” these profits overseas, they can forever defer paying federal income taxes.

Number 11 on the list of highest-paid CEOs in North Carolina was Gerald W. Evans, who got paid $9,189,543 as CEO of Hanesbrands, which ranks #3 on the list of the top 5 corporate tax avoiders in North Carolina.

RankTickerCompanyUnrepatriated ProfitsCEOCompensation
1BACBank of America Corporation$17,800,000,000Brian T. Moynihan$15,940,132
2VFCV.F. Corporation$4,400,000,000Eric C. Wiseman$16,299,996
3HBIHanesbrands$3,286,000,000Gerald W. Evans$9,189,543
4LHLaboratory Corporation of America Holdings$3,144,000,000David P. King$10,853,497
5SEESealed Air Corporation$3,000,000,000Jerome A. Peribere$14,809,624

We Need Company Pay Transparency

Seven years ago, Congress passed a law that included a rule requiring all publicly traded companies to disclose their CEO-to-worker pay ratio. But Wall Street and big corporations have lobbied hard to stop the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from enforcing this rule. It’s time to change that.

Take action to tell the SEC to require companies disclose their CEO-to-worker pay ratio.