April 22, 2020
Pandemic Impact on Director Pay
– Lynn Jokela
I’ve blogged about results from a couple of Pearl Meyer surveys about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on executive compensation. With their most recent report, Pearl Meyer takes a look at the impact of Covid-19 has had on director pay and it says they’re seeing trends in director pay not seen since the 2008-09 financial crisis. Here’s an excerpt:
– While the impact of COVID-19 on director pay is just beginning to emerge, it appears that most companies are poised to stay the course – with 38% freezing director pay prior to the pandemic and 17% moving ahead with proposed pay increases
– 20% of respondents have either rescinded a planned director pay increase or temporarily reduced director compensation
– In terms of the duration of director pay adjustments that have been made in response to Covid-19, 40% don’t know how long the adjustments will last
– About one-half of respondents have no plans to change their annual director equity grant value or methodology