AIG Slapped With Pay Cap

Pay czar Kenneth Feinberg has ordered cash salaries to max out at $500,000 for most of the top executives at the five companies he oversees. Feinberg reviewed the pay of the top 25 executives (meaning senior execs and the 20 highest paid employees) at the firms, including AIG, GM, Chrysler Financial, Chrysler Group, and GMAC Inc. The cap will cover 82 percent of the 119 employees in question, and next month Feinberg will release pay restrictions for the next-highest-paid employees (those ranking 26th through 100th). AIG wanted 10 of its "top 25" to get more than half a million, but Feinberg allowed only five. The company's financial-products group, which was responsible for the derivatives trades that contributed to the financial crisis, saw their cash salaries frozen to 2008 levels. Feinberg's goal is to reduce total compensation for executives at AIG, GMAC, and Chrysler Financial by 15 percent.