WASHINGTON — Trying to tap into anger about the bank bailouts, labor leaders unveiled a Web site on Tuesday that’s devoted to criticizing multimillion-dollar pay packages for executives at six big banks.
The AFL-CIO updated its paywatch Web site to focus on pay and lobbying at the big banks.
“This year’s paywatch is especially timely,” said Richard Trumka, president of AFL-CIO, “because it taps into the anger of working Americans about pay packages for CEOs of financial institutions.”
The six case studies look at compensation and lobbying expenses at Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., Goldman Sachs Group, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo, each of whom received billions from the Troubled Asset Relief Program. All but Citibank have since repaid the federal government, thereby ending oversight over their executives’ pay.
The labor union hopes to build on public frustration to gather support for financial regulatory reform, including the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. The union is planning a rally, which is expected to draw 10,000 people to Wall Street, on April 29.
The data on executives’ pay is based on their company’s proxy statements, “which tend to be complex and difficult for the average investor and American to decipher,” said Brandon Rees, deputy director of the office of investment at the union. The website presents this information in an easily accessible way, he said.
The site “lets people know exactly how well these guys are paid … and how they’re fighting to prevent reform,” Trumka added. “We arm people with the tools they need to talk about that intelligently and with facts.”