The only thing more shocking than my attempt at a humorous title would be the new Walmart pay statistic reported by analyst Dana Lime of NerdWallet. She unearthed the fact that Mike Duke’s retirement package is worth almost 6,200 times more than the average 401(k) balance of a non-executive employee. It has an estimated value of $113 million, and although this may not be the largest retirement package, it has the largest CEO pension multiple. Walmart has previously been under fire for its controversial CEO-to-worker pay ratio being extremely high, but even this is trumped. Walmart spokesperson has attempted to defend the immense retirement package stating that the package was derived from an accumulation of pay over the years.
I was not expecting the difference between the retirement packages to be of this magnitude, so I was astounded when I read this article. Walmart is, of course, a giant in the world of commerce, but it has had its fair share of controversy in the past. From the issues with illegal-immigrant workers, to the ridiculous CEO-to-worker ratio, and now this latest discovery that will most likely spark criticism from many critics. I find such events unfortunate considering the existence of such people like Tony Hsieh who gets paid less than some of his workers and is still able to develop a unique and profitable company
*Note- I tried to make a pun with the title of a Duke, and Mike Duke’s last name in the title (You know its a bad joke when you have to explain it)