ON EA$Y STREET: Wall Street Pay is 5 times NYC Average

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus or maybe Wall Street really is paved with gold. The great unwashed who toil in the securities industry earn five times more than other workers in the Big Apple - or an average of $289,664 - says a report by the state's chief numbers man, Comptroller Alan Hevesi.

Outside the world of Wall Street, typical New York workers earned $56,634 last year, up about 8.2 percent over the two prior years, said Hevesi's report.

Pay raises on Wall Street grew three times faster, said Hevesi, with wages jumping 36 percent between 2003 and 2005.

This year alone, bonuses are expected to soar more than 15 percent, according to compensation experts.

Hevesi said that bonus payments awarded to Wall Street last year totaled a record $21.5 billion - growing to an average $125,500 windfall per person.

The rich compensation packages at Wall Street firms reflect the banner years that the financial services giants keep racking up.

Merrill Lynch yesterday reported that third-quarter earnings rose 41 percent to a record, with revenue up 19 percent to $7.93 billion for the three months. About half the revenue is spent on wages and bonuses.

For the first nine months this year, Wall Street's top five brokerage firms posted total profit of $21.4 billion - a leap of 56 percent from the prior year's like period.

Hevesi said those perks also carry heavy tax bites for employers and employees alike. He added that Wall Street "accounts for 5 percent of the jobs but over 20 percent of the city's wage."

http://www.nypost.com/seven/10182006/business/on_eay_street_business_paul_tharp.htm