Heinz CEO Could Score One Of The Most Lucrative Golden Parachutes In History
Even by the inflated standards of CEO exit packages, that's quite a sum. According to The Wall Street Journal, it would be among the 10 largest in history. There have been only six other packages worth more than $200 million.
By way of comparison, former Tyco CEO Edward Breen recently received around $150 million for helping rebuild the company after a series of scandals.
Should he decide to leave, Johnson is due $56 million in "bonuses and other awards" related to the completion of the deal and $56 million in deferred compensation. He'd also have shares worth $99.7 million for a grand total of $212.7 million.
Johnson may agree to stay, but 3G Capital, Buffet's partner in the deal, replaced the CEO at Burger King after a 2010 deal to buy out the company. He's also 64, making this a pretty appealing time to retire.
Heinz has performed well under Johnson, but giant exit packages have been known to backfire. Recently, departing Novartis chairman Daniel Vasella was offered $78 million as part of a non-compete exit agreement. The outrage over the package was so great that the company had to withdraw it. It also helped rally support behind a Swiss bill that gives shareholders greater say over executive pay.