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    EasyJet Founder Stelios Loses Pay Dispute

    EasyJet founder Sir Stelios has suffered a setback after the budget airline's shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of a multi-millon pound pay package for its executives.

    Sir Stelios was opposed to the deal, which means that 10 easyJet executives will receive shares worth around £8m in three years' time, provided they meet their business targets.

    Some 97% of shareholders voted in favour of the package.

    Sir Stelios has been in a row with the board over executive pay and the board's strategy.

    He said that "executive rewards must be made appropriate to performance".

    He voted against the re-election of four directors including the chairman Sir Michael Rake and accused the board of "having bought shareholder votes".

    But ahead of the vote he said that the board and senior management "will face the consequences if there is no delivery".

    He previously said: "We must take a stand against directors who seem to regard our company as their personal piggybank to be dipped into at will" .

    Meanwhile, Sir Michael has threatened legal action against the low-cost airline's founder and criticised him for refusing to meet the board.

    In a statement issued during the meeting Sir Michael said: "Stelios has instigated a series of increasingly personalised attacks on the board and individual members involving a number of inaccurate and misleading statements.

    "We have advised Stelios that we have reserved our rights to take legal action for potential defamation and repeated breaches of the brand agreement."

    Sir Stelios quit the airline's board in 2010 after a row over strategy, and since then he has been critical of many of the airline's plans.

    Standard Life, easyJet's second biggest institutional investor, gave public backing to the board last week, along with M&G and Sanderson, which hold 17.5% of easyJet's shares.

     

    10 comments

    • MARTIN  •  Birmingham, England  •  3 months ago
      He was objecting to corporate greed and teh board from milking the company. Good on him.
      • Grant 3 months ago
        The less they get, the more he gets. I don't think that makes him not greedy.
    • CHRISTOPHER  •  3 months ago
      Sir Stelios got this absolutely right! We can all influence. Dont use easyjet until the executives fly back to planet earth!
    • Ancient  •  3 months ago
      The EasyJet board seems always in a row because Stelios says everything at EasyJet is as it always was, nothing has changed and the board haven't done anything other than turn up for work occasionally! Hence his challenge to the board and specially the chairman Sir Michael, being paid huge bonuses for nothing!
      The chairman Sir Michael on the other hand says he has made a huge contribution to the success of the company since he came onboard, he just can not remember them to produce a list! but he does have proof that in 2010 he actually turned up for work twice in one month! and has provided the £700 and £900 lunch bill receipt he used for his expenses claim as the proof !
      Sir Michael has now proposed setting up a new Easy brand called EasyRow ! which Sir Stelios claims was his idea in the first place!
    • Tricky-Nicky  •  Peterborough, England  •  3 months ago
      Good for you, Stelios, bang on target. Will any of them listen, though? No, not a chance. The board HAVE bought votes and DO consider the company a personal piggy bank. The only consequence of non-target delivery for them is probably higher bonuses. It is the trend of this Cameron & Co. led country-GREED. Look at the RBS & other institutions & with Cameron & chums at the front of the queue.
      • David J 3 months ago
        Oh please, What did the pevious lot do other than tax my private pension? RBS is in the middle of a major re organisation.

        Why do you expect changes overnight.
    • Templar1960  •  Gateshead, England  •  3 months ago
      good for stelios, but what it shows is that the old boys club still rules in regards the shareholders voting
    • gene  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      Another Greek in Trouble.lol
    • justice  •  Birmingham, England  •  3 months ago
      Why dont the Greek pillock do something with his money LIKE BALE HIS COUNTRY OUT..
    • ISABELLA  •  3 months ago
      One of the government mantras is to make shareholders have more say to help curb Executive pay excesses .... this incident just shows you can't rely on that route to stop greed. How many extra jobs could have been created using some of this Executive pay package? The government need to legislate, bring in a maximum wage or claw back excessive payment in tax. And if there are worries they might find ways round paying tax then the HMRC tax boffins should be plugging every single tax loophole
    • scally boy says  •  3 months ago
      this has put me off using easyjet ever again
    • Jay  •  London, England  •  3 months ago
      Why doesn't Stelios use his ability, skills and billions for some worthwhile charitable cause and leave the running of Easyjet to the Board. He can always sell his shares if he is unhappy with the way the company is run. It is time to let go.....