99%

The AFL-CIO launched their 2012 Executive PayWatch site—

now called CEO Pay and the 99%—which includes the most

comprehensive data accessible on 2011 executive pay. All of

the data available is searchable by industry, by state and by

the top 100 highest-paid CEOs. Check it and help us share it

widely.

CEO Pay and the 99% shows that a CEO of a company in the

S&P 500 Index, on average, received $12.9 million in total

compensation in 2011. That’s a 14 percent raise over the

previous year. And that’s on top of a 23 percent increase in

2010.

In stark contrast, the average wage for workers hovered at

$34,000 in 2011. Median household income fell $3,700 over

the past decade. And those who are employed received an

average 2.8 percent raise—barely keeping up with inflation.

The new site also features data on:

Swelling corporate cash stockpiles. Corporations have a record $2.2 trillion in cash on their balance sheets, according to the Federal Reserve. But rather than reinvest this capital to grow our economy and create jobs, CEOs are not deploying these resources.

The widening gap between CEO-to-worker pay. Last year, this ratio of CEO-to-worker pay had widened to an astonishing 380 times. In 1980, CEOs of large U.S. companies made 42 times the average wages of workers.

Mutual funds’ votes on executive pay. Mutual funds wield enormous clout on CEO pay issues in part because of the new “say-on-pay” requirement that shareholders cast an advisory vote on CEO pay. In this new section, investors can look up how their mutual funds voted and ask their mutual funds to vote against runaway CEO pay levels.

The shady world of private equity, which Mitt Romney’s candidacy has brought to light.

You also can take action to rein in out-of-control CEO pay: Send an e-mail to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and urge it to implement the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act’s requirement that public companies disclose their ratio of CEO-to-worker pay.