Motorola received just 46 percent support during an advisory vote on its executive pay practices, according to investors who attended the company’s May 3 annual meeting.
The vote marks the first time that a U.S. company has failed to earn majority support from shareholders during a non-binding vote on compensation. Last year, Illinois-based Motorola was one of only a handful of U.S. issuers that had less than 65 percent for its pay practices.
This year’s vote appears to reflect investor concern about Motorola’s pay-for-performance metrics. Other potential issues included insufficient details on the compensation committee's adjustments to Motorola's cash incentive plan and the existence of a modified tax gross-up provision in the employment agreement for Dr. Sanjay Jha, one of the company’s co-CEOs.