AstraZeneca's David Brennan, Trinity Mirror boss Sly Bailey and Aviva's Andrew Moss have left after a spate of shareholder revolts in recent weeks on both sides of the Atlantic which have voted down companies' remuneration reports
A spate of shareholder revolts in recent weeks on both sides of the Atlantic have voted down companies' remuneration reports and several chief executives, including AstraZeneca's David Brennan, Trinity Mirror boss Sly Bailey and Aviva's Andrew Moss, have headed for the exit.
12 April: Some 30% of investors at Smith & Nephew failed to back the FTSE 100 medical devices company's remuneration report.
The advisory body Pirc had recommended voting against the pay plans for a number of reasons, including a €1.4m "golden hello" for chief executive Olivier Bohuon. "It is unclear how a golden hello benefits shareholders," Pirc said.
Some 8% of shareholders voted against the remuneration report but the level of disapproval rose to 30% when deliberate abstentions were included.
17 April: Citigroup shareholders rejected the bank's plan to pay its chief executive $15m (£9.4m) for a year during which its shares fell by 44%.
The vote is non-binding but the bank's chairman, Richard Parsons, said: "The board of directors takes this matter seriously." The bank would look at a more formula-based method for setting top executives' pay, he said.
25 April: Nearly 30% of shareholders failed to back Capital Shopping Centres' pay policies. CSC holds big stakes in malls including Manchester's Trafford Centre and the Metrocentre in Gateshead.
25 April: At GE in the US, protesters were escorted out of the annual meeting in Detroit shouting "pay your fair share" in reference to reports that the company had paid no corporation tax.
26 April: The chief executive of drugs group AstraZeneca, David Brennan, quit after more than six years in the post, following pressure from shareholders. The boardroom reshuffle also includes the early departure of the group's chairman Louis Schweitzer.
27 April: Nearly a third of shareholders of Barclays delivered a huge protest against the bank's pay policies – including the £17m package for chief executive Bob Diamond.
Shareholders also handed a severe rebuke to Alison Carnwath, the non-executive director who sanctioned the pay deals. More than one in five investors failed to support her re-election.
1 May: Carnwath, a high-profile serial director with a seat in the boardrooms of a number of major companies, has become a focus of discontent among investors after suffering an embarrassing protest vote by investors at hedge fund Man. Some 40% of Xstrata shareholders failed to support the mining group's annual pay report.
3 May: Five major companies suffered shareholder revolts over pay, including insurer Aviva, which had its remuneration report voted down; satellite communications group Inmarsat, where 40% of investors voted against executive pay; household products group Reckitt Benckiser, Premier Foods and building group Carillion.
Sly Bailey quit as chief executive of Trinity Mirror after almost 10 years at the company, following a growing shareholder revolt over her £1.7m pay package. In Switzerland, 37% of investors failed to back the pay policies of UBS and blocked a resolution that would have allowed the bank to issue shares to pay bonuses.
8 May: Andrew Moss stepped down as chief executive of Aviva just days after the insurer's bruising annual meeting.
Who's next?
8 May: Bookmaker William Hill is braced for a revolt over a generous new pay package for chief executive Ralph Topping, complete with a rise and £1.2m "retention bonus".
9 May: Unilever could have a stormy annual meeting amid concerns over a generous new long-term incentive scheme.
11 May: At Centrica's annual meeting, chief executive Sam Laidlaw's £4.3m pay package is expected to come under attack.
31 May: Deutsche Bank faces a protest from an investor group led by Hermes Equity Ownership Services over the supervisory board's performance over the past year.
13 June: WPP's annual meeting is likely to be dominated by a row over the £13m package awarded for 2011 to boss Sir Martin Sorrell.