August 25, 2022

Record Profit Margins Underscore Growing Threat of Monopoly Power

Washington, D.C. — Today, new data published by the Department of Commerce spotlights the widest profit margins amassed by corporations since the 1950s, signaling an alarming trend of corporate greed being a clear driver of inflation. The report exposes what advocates have been pointing out: companies have been price-gouging at the expense of working Americans struggling with higher costs of living, all while these same companies blame inflation and the pandemic for rising prices.

“While corporations enjoy record profits and CEO get millions more in bonuses, workers are still waiting in vain for better working conditions and working families are still reeling from the immoral price-gougers who jacked up their expenses under the guise of inflation,” said Helen Brosnan, Executive Director of Fight Corporate Monopolies. “Our politicians have a choice: stand up to corporate monopolies and their corrupting influence or stand by while they take advantage of working people trying to pay their bills. Until then, it’s fair for voters to continue to wonder whose side you’re on, and whose interests you’re protecting.”

A recent poll by Fight Corporate Monopolies found that the American public is growing tired of big corporations controlling our economy and politics. An astounding 86 percent of voters believe that a political system corrupted by corporate influence is a serious problem and they’re ready for the government to do something about it. 76 percent of Americans also support legislation that reins in price gouging and regulates large corporations — including a plurality of Republicans. This poll shows voters want bold action against monopoly power: banning stock buybacks, ending immoral price gouging, fighting like hell for worker protections, and prosecuting corporate executives when they break the law. 

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