In just three working days, the UK’s top bosses make more than a typical full-time worker will earn in the entire year, according to calculations from independent think tank the High Pay Centre and the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development.
The Equality Trust has responded to speculation that the Government may introduce requirements for top companies to publish the pay ratio between their CEO and average worker.
A senior French Protestant has called growing income inequality a form of violence and has asked for self-restraint among high earners in a time of austerity.
The gap between very high incomes and low salaries has been widening for several years, says Laurent Schlumberger, president of the national council of the Reformed Church of France. Where governments and consumers are reluctant to act, there is still a moral imperative on high earners to refuse grossly unequal remuneration, he argues.