Corporate Greed Is Costing You Money

This piece was originally published in the May 9, 2022 edition of CAP Action’s newsletter, the Progress Report. Subscribe to the Progress Report here.

“There’s something fundamentally wrong about an economic system that rewards corporate greed and ignores the needs of poor and middle-class families. A growing middle class is essential to a stable democracy. Corporate greed that trumps public need is an open invitation to continued conflict and chaos.” – Brad Bannon

Wage increases, labor costs, and inflation: These are just some of the excuses the CEOs of the biggest corporations in the world have trotted out to explain their recent price increases. But the truth is that despite these excuses, many of these same corporations are pulling in record profit margins. These big corporations and their executives are taking advantage of the recent economic hardships to raise prices on working families and put the difference into their own pockets.

Inflation is real. But corporate greed is also real, and it’s taking a toll on hardworking American families trying to rebuild and get back on their feet after the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Corporations making record profits off the backs of American workers is unacceptable. It’s long past time to end this and force these companies to pay their fair share of taxes.

Share the graphic below to highlight the shocking greed of America’s biggest corporations:

In the news

• President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh met at the White House with union organizers from public schools, Amazon warehouses, Starbucks stores, and more on May 4. The rare high-profile meeting further signals President Biden’s support for organized labor.
• Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) vowed that the U.S. Senate will vote Wednesday on the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2021, legislation that would enshrine the right to an abortion in federal law. Although the vote is not expected to pass, it is an important step toward fighting back in the wake of the draft Supreme Court opinion that seeks to overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

What we’re reading

• “Biden seeks to pass $10 billion COVID-19 bill to prevent a potential wave of 100 million infections in the fall” by Ryan Hogg (Business Insider)
• “How the Jan. 6 panel broke through Trump allies’ stonewalling” by Kyle Cheney and Nicholas Wu (Politico)
• “My 11-Year-Old Patient Was Pregnant. Here’s What I Want You To Know About Being ‘Pro-Life.’” by Dipti S. Barot (HuffPost)
• “What the Leaked Roe v. Wade Opinion Portends for Queer Americans” by James Factora (Them)
• “Oil giants reap record profits as war rages in Ukraine, energy prices soar: Here’s how much they made” by Wyatte Grantham-Philips (USA Today)
• “The Smash-and-Grab Economy” by Hannah Levintova (Mother Jones)
• “Biden administration announces plan to increase access to affordable high-speed internet” (CBS News)
• “Baltimore’s new guaranteed income program will pay $1000 per month” by Nordea Lewis (WMAR)

• “Abortion stories are flooding social media after 

This piece was originally published in the May 9, 2022 edition of CAP Action’s newsletter, the Progress Report. Subscribe to the Progress Report here.