Fair500 → Sectors → Industrials
The largest sector in the index at 79 companies, and the most ordinary. Its median ratio of 177:1 and median worker pay of $70,831 sit close to the middle of everything.
Industrials is the biggest sector in the S&P 500 and the most representative. It spans aerospace, defence, machinery, railroads, airlines, building products, waste services and staffing, and its median ratio of 177:1 sits just below the index median of 196:1. Its range, from 46:1 to 698:1, is wide without being extreme.
Carrier Global tops the sector at 698:1, on a median of $46,976 across 47,000 employees and a three-year average package of $32.8 million. Otis Worldwide at 421:1 and Trane Technologies at 385:1 follow the same pattern, with global manufacturing and field-service workforces with a substantial share in lower-cost markets, and medians in the $47,000–$68,000 range.
Vertiv has the sector's lowest median at $27,811 across 34,000 employees, producing 441:1 on a comparatively modest $12.3 million package. This is the offshore-manufacturing pattern that dominates the technology hardware companies.
Aerospace is different. GE Aerospace posts 530:1 on a median of $93,873, a well-paid workforce by any standard, with three-year average CEO compensation of $49.8 million, the largest in the sector. There is no compositional explanation available here; this is a pay-package story. Howmet Aerospace at 526:1 on a $63,551 median is similar, its $33.4 million average inflated by a $70.5 million most-recent year.
Axon Enterprise at 404:1 is the sector's most unusual entry. Its median of $135,696 is among the highest in the industry, and its ratio comes entirely from a $164.5 million grant inside the three-year window that averages to $54.9 million. Axon was excluded from earlier versions of this site by a blunt founder-pay rule; smoothing is what allowed it to be included.
The railroads pay very well and post narrow ratios. Norfolk Southern at 80:1 on a median of $118,895, CSX at 96:1 on $122,362, Union Pacific at 99:1 on $134,454. These are unionised, skilled, full-time workforces with no low-wage population, the same structural situation as utilities.
Copart has the sector's narrowest ratio at 46:1, and it is a genuine case of executive restraint rather than a high median: $44,620 median pay against just $2.1 million of average CEO compensation. Fastenal at 63:1 on $47,287 and $3.0 million is the same story. Both are companies with modest workforce pay whose chief executives are paid a fraction of what peers receive.
Eaton at 91:1 across 97,000 employees is notable for achieving a narrow ratio at scale, on a $5.6 million package.
The sector median is $45,049, below the index norm, because industrials are labour-intensive by construction. The top of the range belongs to the railroads and asset-light platforms: Union Pacific at $230,478, Uber at $213,824, CSX at $145,217, GE Aerospace at $144,737, Paccar at $143,243.
Union Pacific is the sector's best combined result: high profit per employee, a $134,454 median that is among the highest in the industry, and a 99:1 ratio. The railroads generally score well on both of Fair500's measures, which is uncommon.
Caterpillar generates the sector's largest absolute profit at $10.0 billion, followed by GE Aerospace at $8.2 billion, Deere at $7.4 billion and Uber at $7.3 billion. Deere's median worker pay of $147,019 is the highest in the sector.
Boeing is the sector's only loss-maker, having averaged a loss across the three-year window, and appears in the map's "lost money" band. Its median worker pay of $141,933 is the second highest in the sector, reflecting a highly skilled and heavily unionised workforce, and it is scored neutrally on the pay-versus-profit measure, since a company with no profit has none to share.
| Company | Pay ratio | Median worker pay | CEO pay (3-yr avg) | Profit (3-yr avg) | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carrier GlobalCARR | 698:1 | $46,976 | $32.8M | $2.8B | 47,000 |
| GE AerospaceGE | 530:1 | $93,873 | $49.8M | $8.2B | 57,000 |
| Howmet AerospaceHWM | 526:1 | $63,551 | $33.4M | $1.1B | 25,430 |
| VertivVRT | 441:1 | $27,811 | $12.3M | $0.8B | 34,000 |
| Otis WorldwideOTIS | 421:1 | $59,408 | $25.0M | $1.5B | 72,000 |
| WabtecWAB | 406:1 | $51,471 | $20.9M | $1.0B | 31,000 |
| Axon EnterpriseAXON | 404:1 | $135,696 | $54.9M | $0.2B | 5,100 |
| Trane TechnologiesTT | 385:1 | $67,812 | $26.1M | $2.5B | 44,000 |
| Emerson ElectricEMR | 376:1 | $52,916 | $19.9M | $5.8B | 71,447 |
| United Parcel ServiceUPS | 354:1 | $66,268 | $23.4M | $6.0B | 460,000 |
| TransDigm GroupTDG | 344:1 | $68,247 | $23.5M | $1.7B | 16,500 |
| UberUBER | 335:1 | $98,826 | $33.1M | $7.3B | 34,000 |
| Dover CorporationDOV | 327:1 | $55,766 | $18.3M | $1.6B | 24,000 |
| 3MMMM | 317:1 | $66,524 | $21.1M | $0.1B | 60,500 |
| Johnson ControlsJCI | 299:1 | $66,795 | $20.0M | $2.3B | 87,000 |
| United Airlines HoldingsUAL | 292:1 | $96,670 | $28.3M | $3.0B | 113,200 |
| Rockwell AutomationROK | 291:1 | $55,692 | $16.2M | $1.1B | 26,000 |
| CumminsCMI | 285:1 | $63,834 | $18.2M | $2.5B | 67,400 |
| Parker HannifinPH | 275:1 | $66,034 | $18.2M | $2.8B | 57,950 |
| Delta Air LinesDAL | 266:1 | $100,976 | $26.9M | $4.4B | 100,000 |
| GE VernovaGEV | 259:1 | $63,902 | $16.6M | $2.0B | 75,000 |
| C.H. RobinsonCHRW | 256:1 | $62,176 | $15.9M | $0.5B | 11,855 |
| PaccarPCAR | 254:1 | n/a | $17.0M | $3.7B | 25,900 |
| FedExFDX | 253:1 | $50,791 | $12.8M | $4.1B | 440,000 |
| AmetekAME | 239:1 | $63,719 | $15.2M | $1.4B | 22,500 |
| Automatic Data ProcessingADP | 226:1 | $67,434 | $15.2M | $3.8B | 67,000 |
| General DynamicsGD | 224:1 | $107,485 | $24.1M | $3.8B | 117,000 |
| Northrop GrummanNOC | 220:1 | $112,998 | $24.8M | $3.5B | 95,000 |
| EquifaxEFX | 215:1 | $79,492 | $17.1M | $0.6B | 15,000 |
| Ingersoll RandIR | 214:1 | $75,422 | $16.1M | $0.7B | 21,000 |
| Honeywell TechnologiesHON | 208:1 | $85,048 | $17.7M | $5.4B | 101,000 |
| Illinois Tool WorksITW | 208:1 | $73,094 | $15.2M | $3.2B | 43,000 |
| L3HarrisLHX | 198:1 | $111,832 | $22.1M | $1.3B | 45,000 |
| PentairPNR | 198:1 | $54,012 | $10.7M | $0.6B | 9,000 |
| Deere & CompanyDE | 187:1 | $147,019 | $27.5M | $7.4B | 73,100 |
| VeraltoVLTO | 186:1 | $64,169 | $11.9M | $0.9B | 17,000 |
| Broadridge Financial SolutionsBR | 183:1 | $79,503 | $14.6M | $0.7B | 15,000 |
| TextronTXT | 183:1 | $111,269 | $20.4M | $0.9B | 34,000 |
| Lockheed MartinLMT | 179:1 | $130,614 | $23.3M | $5.8B | 123,000 |
| Stanley Black & DeckerSWK | 177:1 | $47,897 | $8.5M | $0.1B | 43,500 |
| Verisk AnalyticsVRSK | 174:1 | $68,933 | $12.0M | $0.8B | 8,000 |
| Waste ManagementWM | 169:1 | $100,067 | $16.9M | $2.6B | 60,500 |
| Snap-onSNA | 166:1 | $62,691 | $10.4M | $1.0B | 13,000 |
| Huntington Ingalls IndustriesHII | 165:1 | $85,536 | $14.2M | $0.6B | 44,000 |
| Xylem Inc.XYL | 164:1 | $66,535 | $10.9M | $0.8B | 22,000 |
| Republic ServicesRSG | 163:1 | $79,734 | $13.0M | $2.0B | 42,000 |
| W. W. GraingerGWW | 160:1 | $67,858 | $10.9M | $1.8B | 25,000 |
| RTX CorporationRTX | 154:1 | $120,092 | $18.5M | $4.9B | 180,000 |
| EmcorEME | 153:1 | $87,632 | $13.4M | $1.0B | 44,000 |
| FortiveFTV | 153:1 | $94,172 | $14.4M | $0.8B | 10,000 |
| Hubbell IncorporatedHUBB | 152:1 | $64,210 | $9.8M | $0.8B | 18,000 |
| Quanta ServicesPWR | 150:1 | $102,192 | $15.3M | $0.9B | 69,500 |
| BoeingBA | 148:1 | $141,933 | $21.0M | −$3.9B | 182,000 |
| Old DominionODFL | 142:1 | $79,034 | $11.2M | $1.1B | 20,591 |
| Jacobs SolutionsJ | 140:1 | $87,962 | $12.4M | $0.6B | 43,000 |
| United RentalsURI | 137:1 | $88,098 | $12.0M | $2.5B | 28,500 |
| Caterpillar Inc.CAT | 132:1 | $89,253 | $11.8M | $10.0B | 118,000 |
| MascoMAS | 127:1 | $52,107 | $6.6M | $0.8B | 18,000 |
| Nordson CorporationNDSN | 127:1 | $62,650 | $7.9M | $0.5B | 8,000 |
| Southwest AirlinesLUV | 127:1 | $95,715 | $12.2M | $0.5B | 72,790 |
| Comfort Systems USAFIX | 126:1 | $67,118 | $8.5M | $0.6B | 22,700 |
| AllegionALLE | 124:1 | $71,659 | $8.9M | $0.6B | 13,300 |
| Rollins, Inc.ROL | 123:1 | $65,116 | $8.0M | $0.5B | 21,946 |
| Lennox InternationalLII | 122:1 | $63,587 | $7.8M | $0.7B | 12,900 |
| A. O. SmithAOS | 117:1 | $44,976 | $5.3M | $0.6B | 11,500 |
| Expeditors InternationalEXPD | 117:1 | $52,350 | $6.1M | $0.8B | 20,000 |
| GeneracGNRC | 117:1 | $72,040 | $8.4M | $0.2B | 4,200 |
| CintasCTAS | 116:1 | $73,899 | $8.5M | $1.6B | 48,300 |
| IDEX CorporationIEX | 116:1 | $75,575 | $8.7M | $0.5B | 8,700 |
| PaychexPAYX | 110:1 | $70,003 | $7.7M | $1.6B | 19,000 |
| J.B. HuntJBHT | 109:1 | $76,432 | $8.3M | $0.6B | 31,750 |
| LeidosLDOS | 101:1 | $120,427 | $12.1M | $1.0B | 47,000 |
| Union Pacific CorporationUNP | 99:1 | $134,454 | $13.3M | $6.8B | 29,287 |
| CSX CorporationCSX | 96:1 | $122,362 | $11.7M | $3.3B | 23,000 |
| Eaton CorporationETN | 91:1 | $61,945 | $5.6M | $3.7B | 97,000 |
| Norfolk SouthernNSC | 80:1 | $118,895 | $9.5M | $2.4B | 19,400 |
| Builders FirstSourceBLDR | 67:1 | $74,761 | $5.0M | $1.0B | 28,000 |
| FastenalFAST | 63:1 | $47,287 | $3.0M | $1.2B | 24,489 |
| CopartCPRT | 46:1 | $44,620 | $2.1M | $1.4B | 11,600 |