According to a report in the Associated Press, compensation for CEOs of S&P 500 companies soared by nearly 13%, starkly outpacing wage increases for the average worker.

Data analyzed by Equilar for The Associated Press revealed that the median pay package for chief executives climbed to $16.3 million in 2023, a 12.6% increase. In contrast, private-sector worker wages and benefits rose by just 4.1%.

This widening gap means that at half of the companies surveyed, a median employee would need nearly 200 years to match their CEO’s earnings. This disparity underscores ongoing economic tensions, with inflation affecting Americans’ budgets and contributing to widespread dissatisfaction, according to Sarah Anderson of the Institute for Policy Studies.

CEOs benefitted from strong profits and rising stock prices as companies navigated post-pandemic challenges like persistent inflation and higher interest rates. A notable two dozen CEOs saw their pay jump by over 50%. Kelly Malafis of Compensation Advisory Partners highlighted that boards are keen to retain effective leaders, resulting in significant pay hikes.

Increasingly, CEO compensation is tied to performance, often through stock awards. These awards, which CEOs can only cash in if the company meets specific targets, accounted for much of the pay increase. Median stock awards rose by almost 11%, compared to a 2.7% increase in bonuses.

Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom Inc., topped the list with a pay package valued at around $162 million, largely due to substantial stock awards. Under Tan’s leadership, Broadcom’s market value has soared from $3.8 billion in 2009 to $645 billion in May 2023.

Other top earners included William Lansing of Fair Isaac Corp. ($66.3 million), Tim Cook of Apple Inc. ($63.2 million), Hamid Moghadam of Prologis Inc. ($50.9 million), and Ted Sarandos of Netflix ($49.8 million).

The growing pay gap has not always been this pronounced. Post-World War II through the 1980s, CEO pay was about 40 to 50 times that of the average worker. Today, the ratio reflects a “winner-take-all” culture, according to Brandon Rees of the AFL-CIO.

Despite criticism, shareholders generally support these hefty pay packages, with nearly 90% approval for executive compensation plans from 2019 to 2023, highlighting the ongoing trend of rewarding top executives handsomely amid broader economic challenges.