What Is the Gilead Sciences CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratio?
Gilead Sciences's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 96:1 — CEO Daniel O'Day earned $12.0M in 2025, or 96 times the median Gilead Sciences employee's pay of $125,000. That is below the S&P 500 median of roughly 300:1.
This page answers a common executive-compensation question: What Is the Gilead Sciences CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratio?. The answer draws on SEC DEF 14A proxy statements, the public disclosure mechanism for U.S. public-company executive pay. Every public company must file an annual proxy statement disclosing CEO and named-executive-officer compensation in detail. Why this matters for shareholders: executive compensation is the single most-disclosed governance metric at U.S. public companies, and the Dodd-Frank-mandated say-on-pay vote gives shareholders an explicit channel to express approval or dissent. Reading pay data well — including pay-versus-performance, peer-group selection, and time-vesting structures — is a basic part of stock-by-stock fundamental analysis.
The detailed answer below uses the actual proxy-statement filings, explains how to read them, and translates the executive-compensation accounting into the shareholder-relevant interpretation.
Gilead Sciences Pay Ratio Breakdown
- CEO-to-worker ratio
- 96:1
- CEO total comp
- $12.0M
- Median worker pay
- $125,000
- S&P 500 median ratio
- ~300:1
- Employees
- 17,000
- Pay-Performance grade
- B
Source: Gilead Sciences SEC DEF 14A proxy statement (Dodd-Frank §953(b) pay-ratio disclosure). S&P 500 median is an industry benchmark.
Public companies have been required to disclose the ratio of CEO pay to median-employee pay in their proxy statements since 2018, under Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Act. At Gilead Sciences, Daniel O'Day's $12,000,000 total compensation works out to 96 times the $125,000 earned by the company's median employee — a Biotechnology workforce of roughly 17,000 people.
For context, the typical S&P 500 CEO-to-worker pay ratio runs near 300:1, so Gilead Sciences's 96:1 figure is lower than the large-cap norm. The ratio is driven mostly by equity: Daniel O'Day received $6,000,000 in stock awards and $1,440,000 in option awards in 2025, versus $1,200,000 in base salary. Median worker pay reflects total cash and benefits for the employee at the 50th percentile of the company's global workforce.
Whether a high ratio is "fair" is contested. Critics argue wide gaps signal misaligned incentives and weak labor bargaining power; defenders argue CEO pay is mostly performance-linked equity that only pays out if shareholders gain. Gilead Sciences's three-year total shareholder return of 12.4% and Pay-for-Performance grade of B (70/100) are the data points to weigh that against.
In the most recent say-on-pay vote, 87.0% of shareholders approved the executive compensation plan. Moderate shareholder support suggests some investor concern with pay practices.
Pay Ratio Inputs
| Component | Amount |
|---|---|
| Total Compensation | $12,000,000 |
| Base Salary | $1,200,000 |
| Stock Awards | $6,000,000 |
| Option Awards | $1,440,000 |
| Median Worker Pay | $125,000 |
| CEO-to-Worker Pay Ratio | 96:1 |
| Pay-Performance Grade | B |
Other Biotechnology CEOs
Frequently Asked Questions
Gilead Sciences's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 96:1. CEO Daniel O'Day earns approximately 96 times the median worker's pay of $125,000, as disclosed in the company's SEC DEF 14A proxy statement.
The typical S&P 500 CEO-to-worker pay ratio is around 300:1. Gilead Sciences's 96:1 figure is below that benchmark.
The ratio is driven mainly by equity. Daniel O'Day received $6,000,000 in stock awards and $1,440,000 in option awards in 2025, against base salary of $1,200,000. The median Gilead Sciences employee earns $125,000.
Daniel O'Day, CEO of Gilead Sciences, earned $12.0M in total compensation in 2025, including $6.0M in stock awards and $1,200,000 in base salary.
Daniel O'Day is the chief executive officer of Gilead Sciences (GILD).
Our Pay-for-Performance Score rates Gilead Sciences as B (70/100), based on three-year total shareholder return of 12.4%, revenue growth of 5.6%, and shareholder say-on-pay vote approval.
More about Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 96:1 — CEO Daniel O'Day earned $12.0M in 2025, or 96 times the median Gilead Sciences employee's pay of $125,000. That is below the S&P 500 median of roughly 300:1.
Source: SEC EDGAR DEF 14A proxy statements, 2026.