Victory for Verizon Shareholders: First Step in Say on Executive Pay

by Tula Connell, Nov 2, 2007

Good news for Verizon shareholders: The board of Verizon Communications Inc. voted yesterday to adopt an advisory vote on executive pay as a good first step for shareholders.

A group of institutional investors who own nearly $800 million in Verizon stock last month urged the company to adopt the “say-on-pay” shareholder proposal that received a majority of the votes cast by shareholders at the annual meeting in May.

Says AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka:

This is a strong victory for investors. Shareholders delivered a vote of no confidence in CEO Ivan Seidenberg’s pay, and the company took notice.

Verizon announced it will adopt the policy giving shareholders a voice in executive pay starting in 2009. The company also announced it will adopt a policy ensuring the independence of the compensation consultant that works for the board’s Human Resources Committee by banning it from doing any other work for the company. The company said it will clarify the types of executive compensation included in severance arrangements already subject to a shareholder vote.

America’s working families are significant holders of Verizon stock through retirement plans. Union-sponsored pension plans hold more than $400 billion in assets.

Read more here and here.

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