Telus CEO Darren Entwistle has reclaimed his title as the highest-paid telecom executive in Canada, and now a proxy advisor firm is arguing against his massive pay day.
In 2023, Entwistle received $21.06 million, a substantial increase from previous years. This figure included a $1.6 million salary and a $1.32 million cash bonus, with the largest portion being $16.81 million in stock awards.
How does this compare to rivals? Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri took home $12.98-million in 2023, while Bell CEO Mirko Bibic made $13.43-million in the same year.
Glass Lewis & Co., a major shareholder proxy advisory firm, has criticized Entwistle’s pay increase, suggesting it is excessive. In their report, Glass Lewis recommended shareholders vote against the non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation, commonly referred to as “say on pay,” and assigned Telus a “D” grade in its pay-for-performance model, reports the Globe and Mail.
The compensation “was already outpacing the median of peers” before “a significant jump in 2023,” Glass Lewis analysts noted. They highlighted a concerning trend, particularly as Telus stock experienced a negative return last year when dividends were included.
In response, Telus pushed back against the Glass Lewis report, arguing for a “yes” vote on say on pay to subscribers of the advisor firm. The company said that its pay practices align well with shareholder returns, pointing out that the value of Entwistle’s direct compensation has decreased due to a drop in share price.
Telus also criticized the comparator group used by Glass Lewis, arguing that it included companies from different sectors such as energy and pipelines, insurance, grocery retail, railways and banking, which don’t face the same challenges as telecoms.
Despite the pushback, Telus maintains that its compensation decisions are justified by the need to retain Entwistle. “Glass Lewis appears not to acknowledge the importance or challenges of retaining a fully retirement-eligible, exceptional, and extraordinarily long-tenured CEO,” Telus stated in its response to the proxy advisor firm.
Telus will hold its annual meeting on May 9, where shareholders will cast their votes on Entwistle’s compensation.
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Literally no CEO is worth 12+ million dollars, let alone 20+ million.
after a certain amount, they should just tax you 100%. that said, i have zero faith in our current government to use that effectively.
It’s not up to you to determine that…Telus is a publicly traded company, the shareholders should vote against the raise – not the communist government.
yeah no sh*t, look where its got us. ceo with ridiculous pay while their workers cant afford grocery or a house. shareholders are prolly only reason why we live in such a sh*thole world. everything is driven to satisfy them, not consumers, the workers, nope. btw the US used to do just that, tax everyone past a certain amount until politicians started suking corpo d*cks.
I’m not suggesting the CEO salaries are fair (sh.t, I work for a publicly traded company myself) but if the government starts to punish “the Top 1%” as they like to call them, you and me will soon find ourselves in that 1% if they need more money.
The latest tax grab on capital gains is an example that shows how the government distorts reality when selling it to the plebs.
pointing out that the value of Entwistle’s direct compensation has decreased due to a drop in share price
——-
Well DUH!!
Isn’t this the exact reason why he shouldn’t be getting a raise, especially a $3,000,000 one?
Why should shareholders being taking a bath as he makes off like a bandit.
Can’t wait to see Jack-meat calling for a Thellus boycott 🤣