These Are The Highest-Paying Companies In America

> Global workforce: 166,900
> CEO compensation: $16.5 million
> Revenue: $28.1 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 823
> Industry: Department Stores

Like many department stores, Macy’s is one of the nation’s lowest-paying companies. More generally, the retail trade sector employs 13.3% of all U.S. workers paid at or below the minimum wage. At Macy’s, the average hourly wage for a sales associate is $9.33, about half the average for sales associates nationwide. Macy’s closed hundreds of stores last year, cutting around 2,500 jobs. The company reported revenue of $28.1 billion in the company’s latest fiscal year. CEO Terry Lundgren made $16.5 million, the eighth highest total CEO compensation among the over 100 companies reviewed.

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> Global workforce: 191,000
> CEO compensation: $21.5 million
> Revenue: $16.4 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 7,303
> Industry: Restaurants

Coffee giant Starbucks employs roughly 141,000 people in the United States at more than 7,300 locations. Because the coffee chain offers some benefits not commonly offered in low-paying jobs, it has long been considered the ideal job for young students supporting themselves or even single parents. However, an increasing number of reports suggest the famous Seattle company makes life difficult for its employees. Of particular note is the company’s increasing use of complicated and inconsistent scheduling, a practice also used by many other major retailers. This practice means that baristas’ hours may be posted with little notice, preventing them from making other plans, and therefore nearly denying them the ability to earn extra income from other sources.

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> Global workforce: 196,000
> CEO compensation: $5.7 million
> Revenue: $31.2 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 1,733
> Industry: Department Stores

Sears Holdings is the company behind Sears and Kmart department stores. Sales associates at Sears are paid an average of $8.72 an hour. Cashiers at the retail giant make even less, at an average of $8.37 an hour. In sharp contrast, CEO Edward Lampert’s compensation last year totalled $5.7 million. According to Glassdoor.com, only 21% of surveyed company employees approved of Lampert. Low employee pay and a lack of confidence in the company’s leadership may be just the tip of the iceberg for Sears. The company’s revenuedropped by 16% in its most recent fiscal year, after already dropping 10% the year before. Sears Holdings was one of only two low-paying companies that posted a net income loss in the most recent fiscal year.

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> Global workforce: 198,000
> CEO compensation: $28.7 million
> Revenue: $29.1 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 2,581
> Industry: Apparel Retail

TJX Companies, the parent company of TJ Maxx department stores and discount retailer Marshalls, employs nearly 200,000 workers in the United States. According to employee reviews posted on Glassdoor.com, the average TJ Maxx cashier earns $8.45 per hour. In contrast, total compensation of CEO Carol Meyrowitz last year was $28.7 million. On an hourly basis, that amounts to over 1,600 times what the average Marshalls cashier makes.

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> Global workforce: 269,500
> CEO compensation: $32.4 million
> Revenue: $14.8 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 449
> Industry: Food Services

Food service company Aramark had net profits just shy of $150 million in its fiscal 2014. It is also one of the nation’s lowest paying companies. Based on wage submissions on Glassdoor.com, a typical cashier makes just over $9 per hour. CEO Eric Foss, on the other hand, made more than $32.4 million last year, the highest total CEO compensation of the more than 100 companies reviewed. Based on a 40-hour work week, Foss’s per hour wage is about 1,700 times that of some of his employees.

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> Global workforce: 347,000
> CEO compensation: $28.2 million
> Revenue: $72.6 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 1,790
> Industry: General Merchandise Stores

Sales floor team members and cashiers are paid an average wage of less than $10 per hour at Target. By contrast, CEO Brian Cornell earned $28.2 million in total compensation last year, higher than the compensation of all but three other chief executives at the over 100 companies reviewed. While many companies on this list are extremely large by revenue and are also very profitable, Target posted a net income loss in its latest fiscal year. The weak financial performance was partially due to a failed attempt to enter the Canadian market. It was also the result of a costly data breach at the end of 2013, which according to the company resulted in net cumulative expenses of tens of millions of dollars. The total retreat from Canada cost billions.

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> Global workforce: 400,000
> CEO compensation: $13.0 million
> Revenue: $108.5 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 3,770
> Industry: Food Retail

Of the over 100 companies reviewed, Kroger had the third highest revenue in its most recent fiscal year. The company reported nearly $108.5 billion in revenue in its fiscal 2015, a 9.3% increase from the previous year. Despite growing revenue, two of the most common positions in the company, cashiers and grocery clerks, each are paid an average wage of less than $10 an hour. The lowest paying job at Kroger is that of a courtesy clerk, earning an average hourly wage of $8.04. While the lowest paying jobs at Kroger are hovering just above the national minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, CEO Rodney McMullen’s compensation has climbed in each of the last three years, from $5 million in fiscal 2013 to $8.9 million in fiscal 2014, to its current level of nearly $13 million.

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> Global workforce: 420,000
> CEO compensation: $1.7 million
> Revenue: $27.4 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 14,350
> Industry: Restaurants

McDonald’s, the largest fast food chain in the world, pays its crew members an average hourly wage of $8.24. In New York City, most McDonald’s workers are paid the lowest amount allowed by law, $8 an hour. Wages at the burger restaurant are not just low, but erratic, as employees often work part-time, unpredictable hours. This often means such workers do not qualify for benefits, and together with the low wages increases the likelihood employees will require public assistance programs such as SNAP. And inconsistent schedules make planning particularly challenging. McDonald’s reported revenues in excess of $27 billion in its most recent fiscal year, the largest of any restaurant chain. Earlier this year, McDonald’s hired a new CEO, Stephen Easterbrook. In his first year on the job, Easterbrook is expected to be compensated a reported $1.7 million.

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> Global workforce: 537,000
> CEO compensation: $5.0 million
> Revenue: $13.3 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 18,225
> Industry: Restaurants

The vast majority of employees at Yum! Brands, which operates restaurant chains KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut, are part-time, hourly-paid workers. While many Pizza Hut employees are paid tips in addition to their ordinary wages, employers are not responsible for this portion of a worker’s wage. Still, even including tips, the average total compensation of a Pizza Hut delivery driver, for example, was just over $20,000 annually. Taco Bell and KFC workers frequently earn even lower wages. Yum! Brands is one of the nation’s largest employers. With so many employees making wages at or below the poverty level, workers, like many others in the fast-food industry, have gone on strikes and staged walkouts over the past several years.

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> Global workforce: 2.2 million (1.4 million US)
> CEO compensation: $19.4 million
> Revenue: $485.7 billion
> No. of U.S. locations: 5,321
> Industry: Hypermarkets and Supercenters

Walmart is the largest company by revenue, with a reported $485.7 billion in revenue last year. Walmart is also by far the nation’s and the world’s largest employer, employing more than 2.2 million people. About 1.3 million of those work in the United States. While out of the retailer behemoth’s 11,453 total locations 6,290 are outside the United States, Walmart’s U.S. presence is nearly ubiquitous. There are at least five Walmart stores in every state, and most states have more than 100 Walmart locations. Walmart is the largest low paying company, paying an average of less than $10 per hour to its sales associates. In contrast, CEO Douglas McMillon’s total compensation in 2014 was $19.4 million.

Unlike most CEO wages, however, McMillon’s compensation declined by nearly 32% from the previous fiscal year. In addition, the company recently announced it would pay even its lowest-paid workers at least $9 per hour, above the minimum wage but still well below what many researchers consider adequate pay.

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