At $48K Per Week, He's Just Average

Eric Dash writes in today's NY Times about a new hire at MSDW

"John J. Mack, who was named Morgan Stanley's chairman and chief executive last Thursday, has agreed to a five-year contract that will pay him as much as $25 million a year for the next year and a half - or in the me-too meritocracy of Wall Street, at least as much as the average of his high-paid peers.

But Mr. Mack may have to be content accepting the average. Over the last three years, this handsomely paid group of executives has earned an average of $22.8 million a year, according to an analysis of company proxies by Equilar, a compensation research firm based in San Mateo, Calif.

"It guarantees he is going to be treated as well as his peers, up to a point," Mr. Delves said. "He is walking into a tough situation, and he is saying, 'I don't want to lose.' "

Of course on Wall Street, even the losers can win. According to company filings, Mr. Purcell, who announced on June 13 that he would retire after a revolt against his leadership, leaves Morgan Stanley with retirement benefits and stock awards worth more than $62.3 million."