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Proactive Investors – Abrdn PLC (LON:ABDN) shareholders have been urged to vote against a £675,000 salary being offered to new chief financial officer Jason Windsor.
Though the salary would mirror Windsor’s pay from previous chief financial roles at Aviva PLC (LON:AV) and Persimmon PLC (LON:PSN), proxy advisor Glass Lewis warned the salary was above that offered at similarly-valued companies.
Such “significant [pay] would appear to exceed chief financial officer salaries at the majority of the company’s market capitalisation peers,” Glass Lewis said.
Alongside this, the pay would be 25% higher than Windsor’s predecessor, Stephanie Bruce.
“Incoming executives should be appointed on a base salary lower than that of their predecessor,” the advisor argued.
Windsor joined Abrdn last October, following a tough period for the investment firm, with its share price falling over 30% in the last year.
This was as net outflows at the company jumped 35% to £13.9 billion over the course of 2023, while assets under management decreased by 1% to £494.9 billion.
Chief executive Stephen Bird was granted an £800,000 bonus last year meanwhile, despite the firm going through a cost cutting exercise, set to include some 500 job losses.
Abrdn previously said Windsor’s payment was based on “assessment of what it would take to attract the required skills and expertise from the market,” adding on Thursday that compensation was determined on a “range of factors”.
Generally lower pay for executives in London than in the likes of the US has been blamed for hindering UK-listed companies in recent years, with some looking to attract and retain talent by hiking salaries.
Ocado Group PLC (LON:OCDO)’s shareholders were told by advisor Institutional Shareholder Services not to back a potential £15 million paypacket for boss Tim Steiner late last month, for instance.
Such an offer was “materially above market norms” and “not in line with UK market standards and investor expectations,” as per the advisor.
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