Political Cartoon: Philadelphia Energy Solutions’ bonus solution

While the June fire at the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery in South Philadelphia was still smoldering, key employees were given generous “retention bonuses.” The key employees whose quick thinking and good training eventually brought the fire safely under control were not, however, the key employees who received the payouts. Instead, Chief Executive Officer Mark Smith, who’d been hired less than a year earlier, received $1.545 million to stay on and close down the business. Other executives received multi-hundred thousand bonuses.

It may not be an uncommon practice in bankruptcy legal proceedings. But it is a practice that makes the proceedings look bankrupt when it comes to fairly treating the long-term employees who did the dangerous work.

Editorial cartoons from this week include: