Bonus Bonanza is the most used cliché in the past week and the word bonus is clearly a word to be avoided if a value above $1 million is attached to it. It will undoubtedly bring with it the eyes of the world assuming inappropriate behavior.
I rarely follow the fire trucks to watch conflagrations but I could not forbear to write this post. Given the previous post, which showed the amount of stimulus funds going to US senior citizens was less than the amount of bonuses going to AIG executives, I found my data was erroneous. This was a common error since now apparently AIG documents show a higher total for bonuses. It seems that bonuses ‘showered like confetti’ according to the Connecticut Attorney General.
Richard Blumenthal, attorney general of Connecticut says he is asking insurance giant American International Group Inc. why documents appear to show the company paid $53 million US more in bonuses to its financial products division than reported earlier. These documents obtained by a subpoena show AIG paid $218 million US in bonuses to employees in a division blamed for much of the company’s troubles, not $165 million as previously disclosed.
The House of Representatives has now passed legislation to try to recoup the payouts. The measure would slap a 90 per cent tax on any bonuses received in 2009 by top executives at rescued companies.
Seniors’ meals versus AIG bonuses. It brings to mind the ill-fated Marie-Antoinette at the hands of the citizenry after her suggestion, Let Them Eat Cake.
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- Documents show AIG spent US$218M on bonuses (ctv.ca)
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