Could it be decided collectively that the return on equity (ROE) for shareholders is too high?

We examine the change in the return on equity (ROE) and in the gap between it and long-term interest rates in OECD countries. Beyond a certain level, a widening of the gap between the ROE and the risk-free interest rate reveals an excessive return on capital, especially if the risks are increasingly borne by employees as a consequence of labour market deregulation, and if this widening of the gap between ROE and interest rates is due to a distortion of income distribution to the detriment of employees. This is most clearly perceptible in the United States and Spain. In these countries, there could therefore be a growing collective awareness of the fact that the return on equity for shareholders is abnormally high.