From Mother Jones. Irrefutable.
From 2000 to 2006, the real earnings of 93 million production and nonsupervisory workers rose by $15.4 billion. That is, 93 million workers received about $3 billion a year in pay increases, most indexed for inflation.
In 2007 alone, Wall Street bonuses – not their pay but merely bonuses – was $33 billion. In 2008, bonuses totaled $18.4 billion.
Wall Street and the financial system (we ought not forget that more money moves through the futures markets in Chicago than through the stock market in New York) have been sucking wealth out of the real economy.
The resulting financial pressure on non-financial companies shows in a number of ways: cutting corners on safety and environmental regulations; holding down wages, lack of capital investment, deferred maintenance, raiding pension funds, or simply offshore manufacturing.
New Rules, Bill Maher – Hang the Bankers – Feb 20, 2009
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