Pay

Shell’s climate pay gesture lacks thermostat

3 Dec 2018

Linking executive bonuses to carbon targets, as the $258 billion giant has pledged to do, should focus bosses’ minds. Yet the goals and sums involved are unclear, and the plan only starts in 2020. Investors can do more to hold energy groups’ feet to the fire on emissions.

Investors can do more to rein in UK executive pay

22 Nov 2018

Shareholders want boards to stop granting bosses more generous pensions than workers, and to claw back awards when things go wrong. That’s a sensible response to an outbreak of investor revolts. To avoid egregious payouts, though, companies also need to put a cap on compensation.

Hadas: Six economic reasons to hate Uber

25 Oct 2018

Economists are wrong to drool over the car service provider as an exemplar of free markets. This financial zombie has destructive effects on transit, a dysfunctional strategy and an antisocial approach to regulation. Also, it hurts its workers and makes investors look foolish.

GE could take a leaf from Elon Musk on CEO pay

5 Oct 2018

There’s little worth emulating in the recent antics of Tesla’s erratic boss. But his long-term pay plan, while outsized, is tied to several ambitious performance metrics. That’s more defensible than GE offering Larry Culp up to some $226 mln for hitting stock-price targets alone.

Jefferies faces half-a-million-dollar question

21 Sep 2018

That’s what the average employee of the Wall Street firm earns – some 25 pct more than peers at Goldman Sachs. Jefferies hands staff a higher portion of its revenue, yet has paltry returns. After a restructuring of its listed parent the gap is more prominent, and unsustainable.

Danske can deflect pitchforks with bonus clawbacks

21 Sep 2018

CEO Thomas Borgen may have resigned after the Danish bank’s money-laundering scandal. But if he’s allowed to keep bonuses awarded during the time in question, Danske’s reputation will fall further. Its board has powers to claw back unjustified variable pay – it should use them.

Chancellor: “Haves” enriched most from Lehman bust

13 Sep 2018

Ultralow interest rates after the crisis may have lifted many boats, but the yachts of the wealthiest have been buoyed above all. Wall Street and the CEO class particularly benefited. This has come at the expense of the less fortunate, who are making their displeasure known.

Shareholders need sharper teeth in UK pay battle

15 Aug 2018

The average CEO pay in the UK’s largest listed companies increased by 11 percent last year, and is now 167 times that of the median worker. That’s in spite of a move by investors to hold boards to account. More frequent votes on pay, and tougher performance targets would help.

CBS directors need to prepare to fire their CEO

2 Aug 2018

Les Moonves was accused of sexual harassment in a published report. The company is belatedly investigating. If he violated CBS rules, the overpaid Moonves should lose the $184 mln he could collect if terminated without cause. That would partially redeem an otherwise feeble board.

Governance rejig gives UK workers small megaphone

16 Jul 2018

Staff in large British companies will be given the chance to sense-check executive pay under a new corporate governance regime. It’s an acknowledgement that employees as well as shareholders deserve a say on how companies are run. Recognising the problem is only a start.

Carrefour tin ear puts fat cats in Macron’s sights

18 Jun 2018

The supermarket’s ex-boss forwent part of a 13 mln euro payoff after pressure from the French government. It shows that the ex-banker President Emmanuel Macron is no slave to laissez-faire economics. His move to liberalise firing rules makes corporate excess a legitimate target.

Renault M&A race sidelines governance niceties

15 Jun 2018

Investors backed CEO Carlos Ghosn’s pay despite the French state’s opposition. His 7.4 million euro package was greased with soft targets. Yet the high proportion of shares at least gives Ghosn an extra incentive to push for a value-boosting merger with Japan’s Nissan.

Plumber ruling leaves blockage in UK gig economy

13 Jun 2018

A decision by the country’s Supreme Court ruled that a self-employed contractor is entitled to workers’ rights is ominous for companies like Uber which depend on casual labour. But it offers little new guidance for dealing with technology’s impact on work practices.

Royal Mail puts absurd twist on golden handshake

17 May 2018

The UK postal service’s 5.8 mln pound payment to new CEO Rico Back is a familiar way to get a chosen candidate to jump ship. Yet Back already works for a Royal Mail subsidiary. It adds a layer of farce to so-called “buyouts” that have hit investor pockets and board reputations.

Investors shove three potatoes up Ford’s exhaust

10 May 2018

A majority of independent shareholders rejected the automaker’s long-term pay plan, want to scrap supervoting stock and reduced support for at least one director below 80 pct. It’s a significant rebuke, but the Ford family’s outsized votes insulate management from dissent.

Dodd-Frank sheds surprising light on Wall St pay

2 Apr 2018

The widest income disparities in finance don’t involve the biggest CEO paychecks. And median comp can say more about geography and sector than inequality. The law’s pay-ratio disclosures offer useful data for investors and job seekers, and could revive a debate about offshoring.

UK gender pay gap requires “just do it” approach

28 Mar 2018

Disclosures have revealed discrepancies, especially in finance, which will not close on their own. The state can help. Fining employers which fail to make progress over several years would align the interests of women and investors. CEOs would have to match words with actions.

Elon Musk pay deal is crazy enough to get the nod

20 Mar 2018

The Tesla boss could collect nearly $60 bln over 10 years. That’s excessive and surely unimportant for motivation. Yet it’s built on PR-stunt targets involving sales, EBITDA and market cap exploding 10-fold or more. For investors voting on the plan, it’s like playing the lottery.

Wells Fargo hands CEO perfect financial incentive

15 Mar 2018

Tim Sloan’s 36 pct comp boost may look excessive for a problem bank under Fed censure. But he’s the lowest-paid boss of a major U.S. lender, and his bonus is entirely in shares - so he’ll lose it all if he’s ousted. If his turnaround succeeds, though, he’ll deserve every penny.

Volkswagen investors are stuck in the past

13 Mar 2018

The carmaker’s shares are priced at a 20 pct discount to German rivals Daimler and BMW. That’s despite fast growth, a rising operating margin and scale that gives it an edge in electric vehicles. Cost cuts and a full year without unexpected diesel provisions would help close the gap.