近幾年，CEO薪酬持續飆升，尤其在2020年，美國大企業的CEO薪酬甚至高達一般員工薪資中位數的351倍(以下簡稱CEO薪酬比)，凸顯企業內部薪酬差距擴大的問題持續惡化，同時也引來更多的社會關注與撻伐。過去文獻已發現市場投資人和消費者對高CEO薪酬比的公司有負面的評價，對公司的吸金能力與獲利帶來不利。另一方面，全球掀起ESG熱潮，機構投資人紛紛要求美國企業將CEO薪酬與ESG指標相連結(以下簡稱ESG薪酬)，公司也可藉此向外界宣示其投入永續發展之決心。本論文以美國S&P500公司作為樣本，探討公司是否試圖以ESG薪酬轉移社會對於CEO薪酬比過大之注意。實證研究結果發現：CEO薪酬比較高、ESG分數較低及製造業公司，CEO薪酬比與ESG薪酬呈顯著正相關。表示具有上述性質之公司，CEO薪酬比越高，越有可能實施ESG薪酬，以此作為CEO薪酬比過高之掩飾。

In recent years, ESG factors have received a lot of attention around the world. More and more companies link ESG targets to their CEO’s compensation (hereinafter called ESG compensation), and this is considered to have a positive impact on corporations. However, in 2020, CEO-to-worker compensation ratio (hereinafter called CEO pay ratio) of America’s largest public firms was 351-to-1. This indicates that CEO pay gap still rapidly expands in America, and arouses intense discontent towards such pay inequity. This study mainly explores the relationship between CEO pay ratio and ESG compensation, and tries to discuss whether corporations draw attention away from high CEO pay ratio by ESG compensation. Using the sample of S&P 500 companies from 2017 to 2020, the empirical results show that CEO pay ratio and ESG compensation has a positive correlation in high CEO pay ratio, manufacturing, and low ESG score companies. This study provides results implying that companies with these characteristics may be masking the problem of high CEO pay ratio though ESG compensation.

汪進揚、林慧茹(2021)，薪酬公平性︰員工生產力與控制權偏離之影響，第三十八卷第二期，頁 203-230
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