Let me drive you a little more than a couple of year back, at a time when the world economy was going on gung-ho and any news related to astronomical top-management salaries were met with exclamatory remarks such as ‘Oh!’ or ‘Wow!’ Don’t you agree?
Okay, now back to current era, post witnessing the pain of the great recession and any such similar news of soaring salary hikes are seen with suspicion, agony and as being illogical figures. Why so?
When ever the news comes out that some senior executive took home crores of salary, everybody is getting excited and thinks it’s vulgar. Even Government is actively involved in this kind of issue and asks companies to limit salaries.
If you are not aware, number of top management personnel getting a pay package running into crores of rupees has crossed the century mark (105 to be precise!).
The fundamental question is what’s wrong in a particular group of employees or management staff taking home a fat pay cheque?
An untrained worker gets his salary as much as he is worth. Similarly a technician, foreman, supervisor, engineer and a manager gets salary as per their output. In fact, occasionally during the shortage of these particular skill sets, there is premium in their salary structure depending upon the supply dynamics for such postings.
Same way if someone takes big salary what is wrong in it? After all, most of such hikes are backed with the ratification from a majority of the company’s shareholders, who are nothing but owners of these companies to the extent of their holdings.
Similarly, if a senior executive takes home a big salary, why everybody has to cry? It is equivalent of sorts that a poor man crying just looking at the posh bungalow of a rich man. Being rich is not a crime, nor is it illegal, nor undesirable, nor unethical.
Now, take the case of Mukesh Ambani. He has become a public figure. Looking at the present resentment among public, he has curtailed his salary to just 15 crores though he is eligible for 40 crores. We can understand his case from two angles. The difference of 25 crores per annum is peanuts to Mukesh (compared to his net worth). Also he thinks by sacrificing 25 crores, he is trying to get into good books of the crying people.
But at the same time, why any other person has to curtail their salaries? If they are not worth, companies are not stupid to pay them that kind of salary. Then how can the law enforce salary of ‘certain people’?
If the government thinks it can meddle with salaries of employees, why don’t they propose salary cuts to middle management and, especially, lower category workers? They know that if they do, they can not stand against the union actions, media exposure, politician criticism and public uproar or even all put together.
If they can not interfere with ordinary people, how can they interfere with only senior level executives? The reason why senior executives not opposing this issue is they do not want to be in the public glare. Just because someone is reluctant to contradict, will it give Government / moral up-keepers / people with inferiority complex a moral stand in this issue?
How many of you would agree with my above views? No many, I guess.