Bass Ackwards Business in the USA
Remember back at the end of 2008 when America’s Big 3 auto makers were asking Congress for a bridge loan to help them weather the terrible economic situation we find ourselves in? Remember all those Republican members of Congress refusing to help because unionized workers are paid “too well”? Remember those same Republicans demanding that the union workers renegotiate their contracts before they would lend a helping hand?
Where are all those Republicans today and what are they saying about AIG? You know AIG – the insurance giant that has so far received $170 BILLION in taxpayer funds to help them keep from going bankrupt. You know AIG – the American International Group, the company that had a record loss of $61.7 Billion for the fourth quarter of last year.
This is from the AP today, “the company says that AIG is contractually obligated to pay a total of about $165 million of previously awarded ‘retention pay’ to employees in this unit by Sunday, March 15.”
Senator Inhofe, Senator Coburn, Congressman Cole – where is the outrage? Why are you not on television demanding AIG “renegotiate” their contracts?
AIG is giving “bonus pay” to its top executives in the amount of $165 MILLION because they have done such a bang up job. It’s “retention pay” to keep such high-caliber employees. Really.
The average payment to executives for these bonuses is $112,000 each. But, this is just a partial payment of the bonuses. Executives will be receiving future bonus payments in July 2009.
Remember all those Republican members of Congress complaining about union workers making $70 per hour (although that figure is much higher than their actual pay…it’s a long explanation, but that figure includes payment to all UAW retirees, and workers comp insurance, and unemployment insurance, and on and on….).
Let’s say AIG executives work a 40 hour week, 50 weeks per year. Just this first partial payment of the bonus, not including what executives are paid before the bonuses, would equal $56 per hour.
Again, I ask my members of Congress, “Where is your outrage?”
