Both the new and the old top managers in Norwegian were paid a million in bonuses each in May because they stayed in the company through the bankruptcy negotiations.
The hitherto unknown bonus of the recently fired CEO Jacob Schram and former CFO, now new CEO, Geir Karlsen, was adopted this year and paid out in May, in connection with Norwegian stepping out of bankruptcy protection, newspaper E24 writes.
Former chairman of the board, Niels Smedegaard, called the payment a so-called “retention bonus,” a scheme intended to ensure that key personnel does not leave the company in the middle of a demanding period.
Smedegaard told the newspaper that the rest of the top management in Norwegian has also been allowed to take part in the same bonus package, but on a smaller scale.
Retention bonus
“I can confirm that Jacob and Geir have the same ‘retention bonus’ in terms of size, terms, and conditions,” Smedegaard told E24.
The new chairman of the board in Norwegian, Svein Harald Øygard, told newspaper Dagens Næringsliv on Wednesday that he would not comment on bonuses given by a previous board. Still, he confirmed that the bonus was mentioned during the discussion about Schram’s severance pay when he was fired on Sunday night.
However, Øygard defended the bonus to Geir Karlsen, noting the former CFO’s great and extraordinary efforts to save the airline from bankruptcy.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayFinance
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