Ex-Goldman chairman ‘appalled’ at pay

An ex-Goldman Sachs Group Inc. co-chairman is outraged by the excessive compensation given to Wall Street top execs. "I'm appalled at the salaries," said John C. Whitehead, the retired Goldman chairman said in an interview with Bloomberg News. And Goldman, which paid chairman and chief executive Lloyd Blankfein $54 million last year, is among the worst offenders. ``They're the leaders in this outrageous increase,'' he said. Last year, the five biggest Wall Street firms paid a record $36 billion of bonuses, more than $200,000 per employee, according to the report. Mr. Blankfein out-earned all of his counterparts on the street. His co-presidents Gary Cohn and Jon Winkelried, each received $53 million, including cash bonuses of $26.7 million. Mr. Whitehead said that Goldman should take the lead in curbing bonuses, even if that means losing some valued employees. Mr. Whitehead left the firm in 1984 and now chairs its charitable foundation.