SHARING THE PAIN

Standouts among the top 100

Highest Total Compensation: Daniel Starks, CEO, St. Jude: $32.2 million

Biggest Gain from stock option exercise: Daniel Starks, CEO, St. Jude: 29.8 million

Highest Salary: George Buckley, 3M CEO: $1.72 million

Biggest Bonus: Jay Fishman, CEO, Travelers Companies Inc.: $5 million

Highest present value of new options: Daniel Starks, CEO, St. Jude: $6.4 million

The trend within a trend

Median total compensation for Minnesota's 100 highest-paid CEOs dropped nearly 40 percent in 2008, sending median pay below $1 million for the first time in four years. Total compensation includes salary, bonus and other compensation including gains from the exercise of previously issued stock options and shares vested during the year.

Median cash compensation

The median salary-plus-bonus for Minnesota executives declined 9.7 percent in 2008 to $613,233. The comparable figure for 200 CEOs surveyed by the Wall Street Journal dropped 8.5 percent to $2.24 million.

Midwest salary sampler

Average salaries for rank-and-file hourly and salaried workers in the Midwest rose about 3 percent in 2008, the smallest annual pay raises since 2001, according to a survey of about 1,300 employers by WorldatWork, a salary- tracking association. The Midwest region includes Minneapolis-St. Paul, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and Kansas City.