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Monday, November 25, 2013

65 : 35 in Switzerland

65.3% of the voters in yesterdays Swiss plebiscite rejected the proposition to limit top salaries to 12 times that of the lowest paid employee. This means that an astonishing 34.7% would have liked to see such a limit.

This proposition, tabled by the "Young Socialists" would likely have had the following result:

As posed earlier in this Blog, top salaries would have been capped somewhere around 180,000.
(Assuming an income of the lowest paid worker of, say,  15,000.)
So, please follow me on this scenario:
Company "XYZ Enterprises" employed an "Executive Vice President, in Charge of Everything" and for this highly responsible position, the company paid him  300,000 per annum.
In a tax bracket of say 50%, the state would have syphoned off  150,000.
Now with a top earning limit of 180,000, again assuming a 50% tax, the state would have to be satisfied with  90,000, loosing  60,000 in tax money.
XYZ Enterprises would have an increased bottom line by 120,000, (having to pay in wages only 180,000 instead of 300,000) which, most likely, it would have paid out in increased Dividends to its shareholders, thereby making investors, who are most likely already richer than the above mentioned "Executive Vice President In Charge Of Everything" even richer.
This highly competent EVPiCoE would probably not be all too happy about his loss of well deserved income and would  look for employment somewhere else. Neighbouring Lichtenstein, Austria Germany and Italy come to mind. It is also not far fetched to consider that "XYZ Enterprises" might seriously have considered re-locating its base of operation to one of these countries, since, to stay competitive, it would have to attract the best in their field, and, if the Market says 300,000 is the rate, then you cannot attract "the best" with 180,000.
The re-location of the entire company (and XYZ Enterprises would surely not be the only one) would have a devastating effect on the country.

"Not a problem", would the "Young Socialists" say, "we will simply pass laws that these increases in the bottom line may not be paid out to share holders as dividends, but must be distributed among the rest of the staff, and furthermore we would pass another law, prohibiting the EVPiCoE from leaving XYZ Enterprises and then we would pass a further law, making it illegal for XYZ Enterprises to re-locate their company in another country and additionally we would pass another law and then another one and then one more.
Finally "We, the Young Socialists" would control everything...
...and then we would re-name the country: "The Democratic Socialist Republic of the Alps." 

I am exaggerating, you say? Maybe!...

Consider this, however: Where controlling countries, like Russia, China, Cuba give more Economic Freedom to ABC Company Ltd., the Young Socialists of Switzerland would opt for more strangling controls.
Thank the Good Swiss Franc, over 65% of the Swiss were smart enough to see through this grab for political and economic power.

That's  the way

Bertstravels sees it, anyway.
.

8 comments:

Lianne said...

work that same scenario but this time, pay the lowest paid worker a percentage of the highest paid execs - execs having no limit to their pay.

Bert said...

Why don't we just leave the decision how much to pay the EVPiCoE to the XYZ Company? The minimum pay is being regulated by Government anyway.
I think that this entire excitement is caused by envy and a desire to bring everybody on a common denominator.

Lianne said...

I think it is society attempting to narrow the gap between the highest and lowest paid and restore the middle class which on this side of the pond is eroding more and more every day.

Bert said...

How do you restore the middle class by limiting the pay to your top earners ?
You cannot restore anything lasting by Government interfering in private affairs.
What is the evidence for the claim that in Canada the middle class is eroding ?
I believe that a healthy middle class is the back bone of any society

Lianne said...

But the other way around does NOT limit the amount of money a CO can make, it just ensures that the lowest paid is paid a percentage of that. You still haven't poo-pooed that argument which at this point tells me that it is a workable solution making everybody happy.

Lianne said...

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/01/22/canada-income-inequality-cabbagetown-middle-class_n_1219063.html

Lianne said...

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2010/12/01/walkom_the_decline_of_the_selfdestructive_middle_class.html

Bert said...

Why should there be any relationship between the top and the bottom earner? I leave it up to you how much you pay a cleaner in one of your apartment buildings and how much you pay yourself. How do you determine what is "wages"? I could imagine a CEO taking very little in "wages" but a lot in stock options, boni etc. So the cleaner would get very little as a percentage...
anyway, the whole scenario is silly, beacause there is no end to necessary rules, regulations and laws, and we become more and more a controlled society.
I would rather pay the cleaner a reasonable wage and if he does a good job I'd pay him/her more and if he does a lousy job, I would fire him/her....
so call me a cruel Capitalist...
but that's how living standards including of the poorer members of society improved over the ages.
Let Governments stay out of these issues...let them concentrate on "External Affairs" "Internal Security" and fixing Potholes.