Chief executive pay is way up, with top bosses enjoying payroll hikes of between 27 and 40% last year, according to the largest survey of U.S. CEO pay. The dramatic bounceback comes as the latest government figures show wages for the majority of Americans are failing to keep up with inflation.

One CEO, John Hammergren at McKesson, took home $145M. "Bosses won in every area, with dramatic increases in pensions, payoffs, and perks, as well as salary.

Even CEOs who were fired had a good year, with golden parachutes to insure that even when unemployed, life is still good.