Voluntary Pay Cuts

When the Chronicle released its compensation survey data last November in the midst of the Wall Street meltdown, it set off a wave of voluntary pay cuts. For instance, Elson Floyd, the president of Washington State University, returned $100,000 of his $725,000 salary. "We will be asking [students and faculty] to think more creatively and work harder with less as we deal with budgetary restraints," Floyd said in a news release. "It is incumbent upon me to lead by example." Additionally, a number of presidents have declined bonuses in light of the economic crisis, including Michael Hogan at the University of Connecticut, James Ramsey at the University of Louisville, and Richard McCormick at Rutgers. read more in Business Week

Andrew Witty, the new head of the company, has said he will cut prices on all medicines, including HIV treatments, in the 50 poorest countries to no more than 25 per cent of the levels in Britain and the US. The company will also give back 20 per cent of profits to be spent on hospitals and clinics and share knowledge about potential drugs currently protected by patents. ...more