As stressful as it is to be CEO, the rewards are pretty solid, especially when the stock market's strong and companies are sitting on lots of cash. According to USA Today, median pay is up 9 percent from last year.
USA Today looked at the 170 Fortune 500 companies that had filed proxy statements as of March 22nd, and that had a CEO that served for the entirety of fiscal 2012.
16 CEOs managed to pass the $20 million mark, and a couple managed to break $30 million. One tech CEO saw a massive 81 percent jump in their compensation.
Here are the top 10 from USA Today's list. "Stock options" refers to the list's estimated fair value for stock and options granted during the year.
#10: United Technologies CEO Louis Chênevert — $21,790,084
Total pay: $21,790,084
Stock options: $14,833,283
Change from 2011: Down 5 percent
2012 stock return: 15 percent
Source: USA Today
#9: Capital One CEO Richard Fairbank — $22,601,824
Total pay: $22,601,824
Stock options: $20,325,060
Change from 2011: Up 21 percent
2012 stock return: 37 percent
Source: USA Today
#8: Lockheed Martin CEO Robert Stevens — $23,845,459
Total pay: $23,845,459
Stock options: $7,200,001
Change from 2011: Up 16 percent
2012 stock return: 19 percent
Source: USA Today
See the rest of the story at Business Insider