Auto Boss's Enormous Wealth Boils Blood

author: FutureCar Staff    

For the first time ever, US autoworkers are striking against all three members of the "Big Three" auto corporations: General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler). Among other demands, they are fighting for the elimination of wage and benefit tiers, major wage increases, and the restoration of cost-of-living adjustments. But they're also fighting for something bigger. A day before the strike began, United Auto Workers (UAW) president Shawn Fain told members that the strike would be about more than bread-and-butter issues. Autoworkers would be taking on the power of the billionaire class. "I'm at peace with the decision to strike if we have to because I know that we are on the right side in this battle," said Fain. "It's the battle of the working class against the rich, the haves versus the have-nots, the billionaire class against everyone else." When it comes to Stellantis, Fain's framing of the autoworkers' fight as one against billionaire power is especially resonant. Stellantis reported an astounding $12.1 billion in profits for the first half of 2023 — a new company record, it claimed. Stellantis is spending billions on stock buybacks, all while it refuses to meet autoworkers' demands. But amid all the coverage of the auto strike, a major fact about who striking Stellantis workers are pitted against at the company has gone almost entirely unmentioned.

The most powerful person at Stellantis is a billionaire named John Elkann. Elkann is the heir to Italy's prominent Agnelli family business dynasty, which long owned the Fiat auto empire that is now part of Stellantis. Elkann owns racing yachts and is married into royalty. He sits on the board of prestigious art museums and socializes with everyone from Jeff Bezos to Barack Obama. He and his family own famous soccer and race-car clubs. He is a member of the highest circles of the global corporate elite. Elkann is also the chairman and executive director of Stellantis and the most powerful figure overseeing the company's management and strategic direction.

According to Forbes, Elkann has a personal net worth of $1.7 billion. His power and wealth come from his position as the leading heir of the superwealthy Agnelli family dynasty. Elkann is the grandson of the late family patriarch, Gianni Agnelli, one of the most powerful figures in postwar Italy. The Agnellis may be Italy's most famous and iconic family. They have been called "Italy's de facto royals" and "the closest thing Italy has to a royal family." They are one of Europe's wealthiest families. John Elkann was groomed as the family's "ultimate heir" at Fiat and the person destined to take over leadership of the family's business empire. Over the past decade, Elkann moved from his power base in Fiat to his leading role in Stellantis. In 2014, Fiat completed its acquisition of Chrysler, becoming Fiat Chrysler. Elkann served as Fiat Chrysler's chairman. Then in 2021, Fiat Chrysler completed a merger with French auto giant PSA to create Stellantis, then the world's fourth-largest carmaker. Elkann became Stellantis's chairman, while PSA's CEO, Carlos Tavares, became Stellantis's CEO. In sum, Stellantis today is one of the Big Three auto corporations by way of Fiat's acquisition of Chrysler and then Fiat Chrysler's merger with the French PSA Group to become Stellantis. Elkann oversees the Agnelli family's huge business through his position as CEO of Exor.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares is often depicted as the face of the company. His exorbitant CEO pay has come under criticism from the UAW. In a post on Twitter/X, the union blasted Tavares's 2022 pay of $24.8 million, stating that "A Stellantis ‘Temp' Making $15.78/hr would have to work 755 years to match his pay." As Stellantis board chairman, it is Elkann who oversees Tavares's pay. And Elkann has had no qualms about defending high CEO pay at Stellantis. For example, Stellantis shareholders revolted against the huge pay package of Tavares in 2022. They even passed a nonbinding 52 percent vote opposing the company's pay plan. But Elkann defended the huge pay plan. "It is our conviction as a board that in a meritocracy, rewarding on the basis of performance criteria is a fundamental element of our policy," he told shareholders. He emphasized that the shareholder vote was only a "recommendation."

FutureCar Staff