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Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol made over $95 million in 2024, 6,666 times more than the average barista.
A report by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) detailed the stark disparity in income between workers and CEOs across the 500 companies that comprise the S&P 500, an index of the 500 biggest publicly listed U.S companies. The report found that the gap between worker and CEO pay increased from 268:1 in 2023 to 285:1 in 2024. Starbucks had the second-largest gap between employee and CEO compensation, 6,666:1 (only beaten by the clothing brand Abercrombie & Fitch).
Niccol’s pay includes a base salary of $61,538, a bonus of $5 million, and an additional $90 million in stock awards. The CEO was hired in September 2024, which means he was paid that amount for just four months of work.
According to the AFL-CIO report, the typical Starbucks worker’s pay in 2024 was less than $15,000. “The median Starbucks worker would have had to start working for Starbucks in 4643 BC (during the Stone Age!) just to earn what Starbucks’ CEO earned in 2024 alone,” the report stated.
Find out more about Niccol’s pay package from The Guardian here.
