Snout Of Order: Petition To Cap Bankers’ Bonuses
BEAT The Banker: sign our Anorak petition to stop bankers’ greedy salaries.
In the days BCC (Before Credit Crunch) we believed what we were told: senior executives are paid so much because you need to get the best people; traders get big bonuses because they are the wealth generators; you get what you pay for.
The people who should have been controlling such excesses in pay were the shareholders, the big institutions managing funds on our behalf.
Now it’s clear that most of these executives weren’t competent enough to run a cold bath, let alone a multi-national. Risks traders were taking to make their shareholders were risks with our money. We, the ordinary citizen, taxpayer and pension saver have had to come to the rescue. And it’s not just us that will pay the price, but our children, too.
There’s an irony that our Prime Minister and Chancellor get paid far less than the people they are now bailing out on our behalf - and people are still earning vast sums of money for their incompetence.
No-one who works for a company that has been bailed-out with taxpayers’ funds should be able to earn that much, until such money has been repaid.
Let’s be generous. If they are really good and generate money, let’s reward them and give them bonuses. But, however good they are, no-one should get more than, say, £500,000 in pay, bonuses etc.
If they don’t like it they are welcome to try and get a job somewhere else. Just like the rest of us might have to.
So join our campaign. Sign our petition by leaving a comment, and adding your weblog or site to the list. As owners of the banks, and underwriters of the car companies, we have a right to set the rules.
THE PETITION
We he undersigned as UK taxpayers are, by default, major shareholders and/or creditors in a number of institutions such as Banks and other concerns where payments or loans have been made by the UK Government.
As taxpayers and/or pensioners we demand that the employees of such companies are prevented from earning – through any form of remuneration including salary, fees, bonuses, pension payments or perks – anything more than £500,000 until such time as the debts of these institutions are repaid to the Government.
This is recognition that the undersigned were, unknowingly, underwriting the appalling business practices and incompetent management of such institutions and find it unacceptable to continue to reward the individuals involved.
Any employee who finds this unacceptable is welcome to seek employment elsewhere. We demand that the names of such employees are made public to us as shareholders.
Posted: 13th, February 2009 | In: Key Posts, Money Comments (97) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
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March 2nd, 2009 at 11:51 am
simple thing is do what china did.
kill them, hang them, simple way to stop him.
its treasury’s money, public money going to a £600,000 a year pension.
just don’t pay it and say tough, when he goes to the courts say eff off.
so what if its legal, I agree.
if someone doesn’t kill him first.
February 27th, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Kate,
just who is indebted to whom? I think the great British public should be cleared of all ‘debt’, until the banks repay it full……..
Hopefully karma shall
February 27th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
Goodwin is why revolutions happen
February 27th, 2009 at 5:55 pm
Could he make a donation to my overdraft repayment scheme? Or perhaps he could sponsor my glasses so I can see my bank statements.. or is that too much to ask? I’m sure there are quite a few pensioner’s who would appreciate it if he, out of a humility yet shown to be lacking, or any sense of moral balance, offered to donate to a ‘wealth’ redistribution scheme… say £100/person/month?
May karma take its turn as the wheel spins…
February 20th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
[...] Here [...]
February 20th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
Its annoying to read/see/listen in the news all this stupid negotiation about clause in contract for these bloody bankers bonuses…. dont they understand if it wasnt for our-tax payers money -who saved their badly managed banks- they wouldn’t have a job to go to in the first place!?!?!?!
Count me in this petition!!!!…. loving the idea- bring back the bussiness to the tower of london, we can get tourism revenue and somehow help the economy…
PS: Keep what talent????? i’m sure many poor grads who just finished their bachelors and come to the current market can do the same job 100 times better for fraction of what these greedy bastard-bankers earn!!!
February 18th, 2009 at 11:10 am
The bank my Mum works for made a profit & wasn’t bailed out (but they don’t do bonuses).
February 18th, 2009 at 10:34 am
I just wonder how many people will be laid off this week, and not getting paid for the work they have done.
How many shall have their pay frozen, and their tax increased to pay for the many billions paid to the banks.
You are right Allen B, the wrong people are being victimised
February 17th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
Okay so u’ve worked your ass off for a whole year on a very average salary putting in many many additional hours with the view of getting a bonus which is circa 15% of your salary. You’ve never been a burden on the system, never claiming benefits etc and you see this bonus as a way of paying you overtime. You’ve acted in good faith at all times and have no influence over decisions much higher up the food chain and then you get told your not getting your bonus. How are you feeling? I think the wrong people are being victimised!!!
February 17th, 2009 at 4:41 pm
and some slightly better news
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/4680930/Royal-Bank-of-Scotland-forced-to-cut-bankers-bonuses.html
February 16th, 2009 at 10:47 am
Lloyds shares have tumbled even further this morning, shall the fatcats be demanding more bonus’ then?
February 14th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
No money was available for new cancer drugs but it was for a bank bail out. Now OUR money is being used for paying bonuses when the intention was to save businesses and jobs. This money could have been spent on much more worthy causes. The Government should not allow any bonuses to be paid. Let the bankers try taking this to court - they would lose! If it wasn’t for the bail out there would be no bankers bonus and no job either.
February 14th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Bank employees, no matter what their designation, are paid decent salaries to undertake their work in the financial sector. I worked with the Royal Bank of Scotland in the sixties and I was paid a decent salary to do a decent job of work and I never ever received bonuses in my ten year employment with the Bank. The bonus culture is disgraceful and the government should have the authority, in view of the current economic climate, to stop this immediately otherwise it is inevitable that the situation with failing banks incurring huge losses will deepen and the taxpayer will suffer all the more. Gordon Brown, do something and do something now before it is too late.
February 14th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Put the whistle blower in charge of the banks, the only one who knew what was going on ! Ban all bonuses as well What other job receives bonuses?
February 14th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Oh I dunno Yampster, are the banks worth that much? what with bad will, bad debts and surly sods behind the counter…perhaps the taxpayers could just elbow the buggers out of the way and start making some profit, or, at least, less of a loss.
or turn them into something useful , like a bar
February 14th, 2009 at 10:46 am
Sell the banks to their staff? Have you any idea how much a bank is worth. Where are the staff going to get the money to buy it with? A loan perhaps? From the bank you are buying or from another one?
Anyway, I wouldn’t want my bank to be run by the sort of surly, unhelpful, time serving people who take their lunch breaks from 12 till 2 when the rest of us have to use their services. But hey! That’s just me
February 14th, 2009 at 9:43 am
Karen, think pate not pete is ‘aving us on….
February 14th, 2009 at 8:59 am
Pete
All the banks in the UK belong to big conglomerates, there is no such thing as a ’small local bank’, just branches of the big ones.
The only option we have is the Bank of Under the Mattress.
The bonus culture is a part of the financial/moral crisis over here, and stopping it would be an even better idea than capping it. The minnows work to the least salary the fatcats are willing to pay and are awarded with a bonus, the fat cats seriously do not need them, especially when the bonus is for failure and multi million.
Sadly most do not have any money, a large chunk have lived on credit,and now debt is the order of the day.
February 14th, 2009 at 3:53 am
Pete
I don’t think we do have local banks.
And some of us are Scottishers.
February 14th, 2009 at 2:53 am
This may seem like a silly idea, but then I’m not from the UK… Don’t you have small local banks? Why not deposit YOUR money in one of those. Perhaps the UK is too far gone into socialism. My local bank executives don’t get such large bonuses, neither does the bank that holds my mortage note. But then I was proactive about such things long ago. When Bank of America (I’m an American BTW) bought out my small local bank, I withdrew my money and put it into different locally owned bank. Perhaps you don’t have the freedom of choosing from among several different banks? All I know is that neither of the banks I do business is asking for bailouts. Lucky me I guess… Seems to me that it is a bit socialist to put maximum level caps on income… But hey, if that’s what you Englishers want, go for it. I hope people in my country with the same idea are sadly disappointed. It’s sad when other people can’t be pro-active and a bit forward looking in their fiscal plans with their own money and by legislation remove my ability to do so… I’d say a better idea would be if you find that your bank pays out bonuses that you don’t agree with, close your accounts and open one with a bank that has banking practices that you agree with, in other words do some homework… Or don’t do some homework, but also don’t cry when the bank you blindly trusted fails, the onus is on you. BTW if you are a doofus who doesn’t like to do homework on where you place your financial assets, I would like to mention that the Royal Bank of Patelandia is now open and accepting deposits…
February 13th, 2009 at 11:54 am
http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/BankStaffTrusts/
Banks: sell them to their staff for long term efficiency
Employee-owned companies have a record of long-term stability. They are more likely to criticise themselves than to pretend all is perfect to maintain a share price. They are not run for senior staff alone. They are less likely to bully junior staff or customers.
Several petitions on this site suggest what’s to be done with Northern Rock, Royal Bank of Scotland and the rest, and we believe that a staff-controlled trust to control at least one bank is a part of the answer.
February 11th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
The amounts are obscene!
February 11th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
Bankers bonuses should not be paid - given that they’ve nearly bankrupted the country, their contracts should be immaterial. On account of their sheer incompetence, other people are losing their jobs and losing their houses. Losing a bonus is nothing by comparison.
February 11th, 2009 at 10:06 am
Grrrrrrrrr, that’s it, enough is enough. Bring on the revolution!
The rich and powerful have always filled their own pockets at the expense of the poor but things have gone too far. No ifs, no buts (says the govt) misapropriating public money (benefit fraud) is a crime for which you will be punished, except of course if you are an MP (then you can claim it’s an HONEST mistake keep the money and your job).
Want to stand for election as a councilor? Not if you’ve got a criminal record, you’re barred (but if you’ve got the right connections you can get yourself appointed to sit in the Lords)
Got an addiction to gambling and making crap decisions? Want the opportunity to wrecklessly gamble other people’s money with a guaranteed salary and obcene bonuses regardless of your success rate? Then try a career in banking, no previous experience or qualifications required!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
February 11th, 2009 at 8:57 am
Not me. I have a funny side. I’m sure I have…somewhere.
There have been a few pricks (see Anorak’s official guide and swear word list) making silly remarks since I stepped down from admin.
I was too tired to bother and too thick-skinned to care.
February 11th, 2009 at 8:33 am
agw
I guess the mods removed it before you saw it. I had a joke tagged on to my last post about when you were chief mod. I was worried you’d seen it and were annoyed. But since it was removed it’s only polite to apologise anyway.
February 11th, 2009 at 7:34 am
Karen: ????
February 10th, 2009 at 11:34 pm
agw
Sorry about the joke (it was only a generic one, not personal). I hope you weren’t offended. x
February 10th, 2009 at 10:26 pm
June,
As I’ve pointed out twice already, I do not and never have worked for a bank.
And I’m not sure exactly where I’ve asked anyone to jump (let alone a customer).
Everyone can post what they like as far as I’m concerned - and that includes me.
chenier,
I didn’t know I had to be solicited before I could post here.
And who’s the oldest of them all ?
And how am I to know that ?
Anyway, no offence intended to anyone. Apologies if any has been taken and I sincerely hope you all get through the iffy times ahead unscathed.
February 10th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
Petition signed.
Two words “PURE INCOMPETENCE”. Do these people think they’re “untouchable”. Well that’s the message I get. They should be grateful to have their job at this stage.
Can someone please tell me which company rewards failure… oh yes! RBS…any job vacancies?
I don’t think they know their left from their right. No wonder we’re in the mess we’re in.
I say…get the names of the individuals who decide to payout bonuses out in the open and SACK them.
It’s time for us to protect the taxpayers £s.
February 10th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
How do bankers sleep at night, people losing their homes and jobs. As a pensioner
any savings we have wil not be enough without a decent interest rate a £50,000.00 bonus would do nicely.