Thinking Andrew Cuomo too distracted to notice, AIG is paying out bonus money by the crapload this week even though…yeah, you know by now. Treasury Secretary Geithner did not think this was lol-worthy, and personally called AIG chief Edward Liddy to say as much.
Unaware that the newfangled telephone machine allows for two-way conversation, Liddy responded to Geithner via letter (no, really) telling him where he could stick his anger:
“We cannot attract and retain the best and brightest talent to lead and staff the AIG businesses — which are now being operated principally on behalf of the American taxpayers — if employees believe that their compensation is subject to continued and arbitrary adjustment by the U.S. treasury,” Liddy wrote.
Call me a cynic, but if AIG were already able to attract the best and brightest talent with its bonus structure, maybe the company wouldn’t be in the predicament it’s in now. No, I don’t mean to imply that AIG’s rank and file wear bicycle helmets all day long and spend their days coloring outside the lines; my populist outrage is as usual directed at company management – the top 50 of whom, I might add, were on track to receive an average bonus of $192,000 each. Yes, that bonus is for 2008, which leaves me wondering what kind of bonus they would have received in a year where they did not drive the company to the brink of insolvency and onto the public dole for an unprecedented and, before last September, utterly unfathomable amount of money. Surely such a jaw-dropping performance would have had to have been worth at least $193,000.
lavacake // Mar 14, 2009 at 8:55 pm
“if employees believe that their compensation is subject to continued and arbitrary adjustment by the U.S. treasury”
And why not????!!!! The U.S. Treasury has been propping up AIG for the past few months; we have every right to monitor and adjust their compensation. Another bozo who needs to join the ranks of the unemployed millions.
lavacake // Mar 14, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Their average bonus should be -193,000
jax // Mar 14, 2009 at 10:18 pm
This is sick. Why in the world are we helping these companies that keep sending millions to people who do not know how to run a company? Furthermore, I fear this is just the tip of the iceberg–there are so many ways these funds are hurting ‘average Joes’ but benefiting those in high places. Look what Enterprise rent-a-car did to get bailout funds:
http://www.butasforme.com/2009/02/25/alert-enterprise-rent-a-car-may-have-fired-employees-as-fake-evidence-when-lobbing-for-bailout-money/
Fartles // Mar 14, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Oh gawd. That isnt a real news story. It’s got to be some mirage. Jesus :/
wild // Mar 15, 2009 at 12:43 am
~~~~cynic~~~~
wild;)
Jeffrey // Mar 15, 2009 at 8:44 am
Not sure where all that “talent” would go in this economy. Anyone looking to hire incompetent screwups to run their already failing businesses into the ground quicker?
Jason // Mar 15, 2009 at 8:45 am
I am sure Citi is hiring.
LoLo, ESQ // Mar 15, 2009 at 5:36 pm
I remember the heydays at Citi when we would expense $4k for lunch and didn’t have to account to the government for our bling bling.
self-evident » Winners and losers // Mar 15, 2009 at 8:37 pm
[...] AIG Discloses Counterparties (Calculated Risk) [...]
Ron // Mar 16, 2009 at 11:45 am
The bonus payout excesses at AIG are just the tip of the iceberg of what is happening with the other Wall Street bailouts including Bank of America. Working productive Americans are bailing out the same crooks that destroyed our economy along with 45% of the wealth in the world and now the American taxpayers and our children will be forced to live a far lower standard of living with reduced prosperity and opportunities due to this but only we pay the price.
Washington has bailed out the banks, Wall Street & their Washington special interests and much of the cost is added to the national debt to by paid by this and future generations while real estate and investments continue to fall. Find out what a growing repudiate the debt movement could mean for treasuries, the dollar, gold and the stock market and how this is a better alternative than Washington’s plans to monetize the debt in future years and tax and destroy our remaining wealth by depreciating the dollar.
The Campaign to Cancel the Washington National Debt By 12/21/2012 Constitutional Amendment is starting now in the U.S. See: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=67594690498&ref=ts