Fox Business and New York Post criticize Kirby’s $32 million 2025 pay
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby was talking to the New York Times about growing public distrust of CEOs and whether he felt any responsibility to quell that distrust. He said wealth inequality was a “danger to society” and called for a national wealth and inheritance tax in the recent interview.
“We should have a national wealth tax – it won’t work by state because people will just move,” he said. “And I think we should have inheritance taxes that get close to 100% at some level. I would pay them.”
Archival image caption: Scott Kirby, the CEO of United Airlines, testifies before the Senate on Capitol Hill on December 15, 2021, in Washington. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/AP.
The Guardian reported that conservative politicians and commentators were scrutinizing Kirby over his comments. Headlines from Fox Business and the New York Post decried that Kirby made $32 million in 2025. Former Fox News host Glenn Beck and other users on X called for a boycott of United Airlines.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry called the statement “audacious.” On X, Landry wrote, “How audacious from a guy that didn’t even build @united and makes $32 million a year,” and linked to a government website where readers could donate money to the government. He added, “Better yet, he should distribute his salary to the employees at the bottom of the ladder @united!” and, “Let’s see you step up and place your money where your mouth is!”
Kirby’s comments came just two weeks before California voters were set to decide on a so-called “billionaire’s tax,” which would put a 5% tax on the state’s billionaires. The wealthy have spent millions fighting against the proposal.
Kirby was also asked about the rising cost of flying and said that high prices this year were being compared with the “artificial low” prices from the pandemic, which largely halted travel and highly disrupted the airline industry. “We have to charge enough that it covers the cost of flying, and it’s expensive to fly airplanes,” he said.
When asked about the $70 passengers must pay to sit in an aisle or window seat if they aren’t a frequent flyer with United, Kirby responded that “the way to give everyone what they want is to charge for the services and products that those customers want,” adding: “There are customers that pay more that get more.”
Kirby also maintained that fares were still lower than in 2019 after adjusting for inflation. According to Labor Department data, the airline-fare index increased by about 20% from September 2019 to September 2026, while overall consumer prices increased by 31%.