I disagree with this, far too socialist for my liking
That said, I don't know the details of Barclays, so maybe its a loss, but the bank has performed better than expected, and it could have been a huge loss? But forgetting about the individual bank, it's the sentiment I don't agree with.
A lot of us here are running businesses. Taking out the flexibility argument and the feeling of working for yourself or being the boss, the harsh reality is, it's bloody hard graft.
As a business owner or employer, you will work a dam site harder than the average employee, you will have an awful lot more responsibility, stress, pressure etc. So unless you are a saint, you are doing all this for a financial gain.
If you have a particularly good year or quarter, then no doubt you will give yourself a better dividend as a reward for all the hard work you've put in.
Now imagine someone coming along and saying, nope, you can't earn any more. Thats it, regardless how well you do, generating revenue, offering job security for your workforce. It's hardly going to you an incentive or stimulate you into bigger and better things.
Of course employees that have done well and gone the extra mile should receive a bonus if it is genuinely earned, and the same system should go all the way to the top, regardless of salary.
Why treat banks or public companies any different? All the previous issues have been flagged, the system
was out of control, the financial services sector imploded in a frenzy of greed and power.
But from the ashes, lets reward star performing bosses who are sifting through the mess and turning these huge corporations round and making the hard decisions I certainly wouldn't want to.
I'd sooner have a banks senior management performing well, and motivated, looking forward and trying to stabilse and secure the remaining workforce, rather than an unmotivated one, that will spell more doom and gloom and potentially put more homeless on the streets.