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BusinessLive reports that Pick n Pay shareholders have expressed dissent at the R16m termination payout to former CEO Pieter Boone, triggering a JSE rule that requires the retailer to address their concern.
At the AGM on Tuesday the group failed, in a nonbinding vote, to secure the required 75% majority to implement its pay policy. Under JSE listing rules, publicly traded companies such as Pick n Pay are required to table nonbinding advisory votes on pay policy for the top rank at their AGMs. If 25% or more vote against it, companies are forced to approach dissenting shareholders to address their concern. Shareholders questioned the board’s decision to award Boone such a substantial payout, especially considering the company’s financial losses and falling share price, which dropped more than 50% over the past five years. They called for transparency on the criteria used to determine executive payouts, as well as assurances that future executive remuneration would be tied more closely to company performance and shareholder value. The board defended the payout, stating it was a legal obligation under Boone’s contract. All shares awarded to him under the restricted share plan were forfeited. It assured shareholders that future executive remuneration, including long-term incentives, would be more closely aligned with the company’s strategic goals. Shareholders were also unimpressed with the disclosure practices surrounding executive pay rates, particularly the omission of the lowest-paid employee’s salary.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nompilo Goba at BusinessLive
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