CCE execs get cash bonus ahead of job cuts
thousands of dollars for the firm's 2006 performance, despite last
week announcing a $1.7bn loss and a plan to cut 3,500 jobs.
John Brock, the firm's chief executive officer, is to get $1m, closely followed by executive chairman Lowry Kline, who will receive $811,368 in a round of "discretionary cash awards". The move again raises debate over policies of offering performance-related cash rewards to executives. Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) announced the awards to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on the same day it announced it was to cut five per cent of its workforce. The planned job cuts, set to affect 3,500 workers over the next couple of years, follow a $1.7bn loss for CCE, which bottles drinks for Coca-Cola, in 2006. The firm's leadership assured they would not receive annual bonuses at last week's full year results conference, in light of a $2.9bn impairment charge that caused the loss. But the group said it "determined that it was appropriate to provide discretionary awards based on the company's sales volume performance and its operating income results for 2006". Operating income increased by $264m without the one-off charge, while the awards totalled $3.6m. A CCE spokesperson was unavailable for comment on Monday. The news is unlikely to be greeted kindly by workers in both North America and Western Europe, who must now wait to see where the axe will fall. The job losses are a central part of CCE's restructuring plan, which it will largely implement over 2007 and 2008 to mitigate rising costs and improve its ability to match a consumer shift away from fizzy drinks and towards non-carbonated, healthier beverages. The CCE cash awards list John Brock, chief executive officer: $1,038,400. Lowry Kline, former chief executive officer and executive chairman: $811,368. John Culhane, executive vice president (vp) and general counsel: $320,188. Shaun Higgins, executive vp and president, Europe: $392,683. Terrance Marks, executive vp and president, North America: $392,683. Vicki Palmer, executive vp, Financial Services and Administration: $324,719. William Douglas III, senior vice president, chief financial officer, $324,719.
