Swiss vote to curb corporate exec pay

Published: March 3, 2013 3:21 PM
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

... "Today's vote is the result of widespread unease among the population at the exorbitant remuneration of certain company bosses," Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga told a news conference in the capital Bern hours after polls closed.

Swiss lawmakers will now have to draft a law giving shareholders the right to hold a binding vote on all compensation for company executives and directors. The law will also ban what is known in Switzerland as golden hellos and goodbyes -- bonuses that senior managers sometimes receive when joining or leaving a company.

It also promotes greater corporate transparency, for example by requiring that all loans to executives be declared and forcing pension funds to tell their members how they voted at shareholder meetings.

The measure targets all Swiss-based companies as long as their shares are publicly traded. Breaching the rules could lead to a fine of up to six annual salaries and up to 3 years in prison ...

http://www.newsday.com/business/swiss-vote-to-curb-corporate-exec-pay-1.4743444