Obama Slows Corporate Gravy Train

The Obama administration has opted to slash executive salaries at firms rescued by taxpayer bailouts, cutting cash payments by 90 percent amid a public backlash at bloated Wall Street bonuses.

In a dramatic government swipe at big business as unemployment nears 10 percent and the economic crisis reaps a painful toll, President Barack Obama's corporate pay czar also hacked away at corporate perks and "golden handshake" payoffs.

The US Federal Reserve meanwhile fired its own shot at the corporate gravy train, unveiling new rules to curb pay awards at top banks that encourage excessive risk-taking which imperils the wider financial system.

Treasury official Kenneth Feinberg cut cash payouts to the 25 top executives of seven bailed out firms by an average of 90 percent, capping salaries at half a million US dollars for most, and reducing total compensation by an average of 50 percent.

Read it all here.