After Kroger ended hazard increase for workers, its CEO received $22.4 million
Last year, at the same time critics panned Kroger for ending its $2 hourly hazard increase for workers, CEO Rodney McMullen received his largest pay package ever — $22.4 million — thanks to a larger bonus, more stock awards, and a salary increase, Bloomberg reports.
The amount of McMullen's pay package was disclosed Thursday in a regulatory filing. During the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, Kroger gave store and warehouse workers the $2 hazard pay increase, dubbed the Hero Bonus. The bonus ended after just two months, even as the pandemic raged on.
McMullen has been the CEO of Kroger since 2014, and his 2020 pay package was almost 6 percent higher than the one he received in 2019. Meanwhile, the pay for Kroger's median employee dropped 8 percent to $24,617, Bloomberg reports. Kroger has 465,000 employees and about 2,740 stores.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Grocery store workers have been heralded throughout the pandemic as essential workers, and the industry got a boost over the last year as customers bought more food to eat at home and stockpiled household goods. In March, Kroger said it planned on bringing the average hourly wage up from $15.50 per hour to $16, and in April, it gave full-time workers a $300 bonus and part-time workers $150.
"Kroger continues to reward and recognize our associates for their incredible work during this historic time," a Kroger spokesperson told Bloomberg in a statement.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
'Voters know Biden and Trump all too well'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Is the Gaza war tearing US university campuses apart?
Today's Big Question Protests at Columbia University, other institutions, pit free speech against student safety
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
DOJ settles with Nassar victims for $138M
Speed Read The settlement includes 139 sexual abuse victims of the former USA Gymnastics doctor
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homes
Speed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'
Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bid
Speed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Disney and DeSantis reach detente
Speed Read The Florida governor and Disney settle a yearslong litigation over control of the tourism district
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Visa and Mastercard agree to lower swipe fees
Speed Read The companies will cap the fees they charge businesses when customers use their credit cards
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billion
Speed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?
speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Feds cap credit card late fees at $8
speed read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to save households an estimated $10 billion a year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published