We highly recommend Agains the Rules, the superb new podcast series from Michael Lewis (author of The Big Short, The Fifth Risk, Liar’s Poker, and much more) that examines the decline of “refs,” the independent arbiter formerly relied on but now losing credibility, from basketball to art to, yes CEO pay. VEA Vice Chair Nell…
How could Volkswagen’s CEO not know about China’s repression of Muslims? – The Washington Post
A joint venture based in Shanghai, SAIC Volkswagen, is one of the oldest such automakers in China, with production based in several cities across the country, including in Xinjiang, home to ethnic Muslim Uighurs and other minorities in China’s far northwest. The joint venture says it “strives to be a responsible corporate citizen,” concerned about…
Four Tesla directors to leave in governance overhaul | Financial Times
Tesla disclosed that four of its directors are to step down as part of a governance overhaul at the electric car maker, following criticism in recent months of the board’s failure to exert more control over chief executive Elon Musk. The shake-up was announced late on Friday, and came after the company’s new independent chairwoman,…
Firms are better off revealing their environmental practices, new research shows | EurekAlert! Science News
Is honesty the best policy when it comes to being green? It just might be, according to a new paper by Michel Magnan, a professor of accountancy at the John Molson School of School of Business.In their article for Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, Magnan and co-author Hani Tadros of Elon University in North…
Schroders shareholders urged to rebel over CEO’s £6m bonus | Business | The Guardian
The fund manager Schroders is at risk of a shareholder backlash after an influential advisory firm issued a warning about “excessive” bonuses and the appointment of a Schroder family member to its board.Glass Lewis has recommended that at next month’s annual meeting investors vote against the company’s pay report, as well as the election of…
Shareholder Proposal Calls on Exxon to Disclose Lobbying Expenses and Policies
To ExxonMobil Shareholders: The United Steelworkers International Union (USW) urges shareholders to vote FOR Item 10, Report on Lobbying at the ExxonMobil Shareholder Meeting on May 29, 2019. The proposal, Item 10, calls on ExxonMobil to prepare a report, to be updated annually, disclosing: 1) ExxonMobil’s policies and procedures governing lobbying, both direct and indirect,…
Most oil giants still fighting shareholder pressure to address climate
VEA Vice Chair Nell Minow is quoted in this article about the disconnect between what fossil fuel companies tell their investors and customers they believe on climate change and what they actually do. The world’s largest oil companies, including Exxon, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and BP, are responding to that pressure in varying degrees. Some are…
A Professor Filed a Shareholder Lawsuit to Restrict Shareholder Rights
“An enormous zeal for the overdog” — a good description of this effort to get the shareholders of J&J to waive their right to file shareholder lawsuits — permanently. Over the past two years, some senior officials at the Securities and Exchange Commission have indicated that they would be open to corporations foisting mandatory arbitration on…
Gender-Diversity Funds: How Strong Are Their Intentions? – Morningstar Blog
Morningstar examined the voting records of self-described “diversity” funds. We have some thoughts: 1. It is great that Morningstar is looking at and comparing the proxy voting records of the funds it covers. It should do more. 2. For example, it should look at the proxy voting records of all funds, whether they are explicitly…
