France to cap top pay in state groups

By James Boxell in Paris

France’s new socialist government has launched a crackdown on excessive corporate pay by promising to slash the wages of chief executives at companies in which it owns a controlling stake, including EDF, the nuclear power group.

In a departure from the more boardroom-friendly approach of the previous right-of-centre administration, newly elected president François Hollande wants to cap the salary of company leaders at 20 times that of their lowest-paid worker.

According to Jean-Marc Ayrault, prime minister, the measure would be imposed on chief executives at groups such as EDF’s Henri Proglio and Luc Oursel at Areva, the nuclear engineering group. Their pay would fall about 70 per cent and 50 per cent respectively should the plan be cleared by lawyers and implemented in full.

Mr Proglio earned €1.6m last year – 65 times more than his lowest-paid worker.

The government also wants to pressure other companies in which it owns a stake to follow its lead, even though it has no legal power to force such a change.

France is unusual in that it still owns large stakes in many of its biggest global companies, ranging from GDF Suez, the gas utility; to Renault, the carmaker; and EADS, parent group of passenger jet maker Airbus.

Mr Ayrault said he “believed in the patriotism” of company leaders and their willingness to share the country’s economic pain. Mr Hollande and his ministers are taking a 30 per cent pay cut.

Demonstrating the government’s eagerness to flex its muscles over boardroom rewards, Pierre Moscovici, the finance minister, said the state also plans to vote against a €400,000 payoff to the sacked chief executive of Air France-KLM at the company’s annual meeting in Paris on Thursday. France owns 15.8 per cent of the struggling Franco-Dutch airline.

Mr Moscovici said the payment to Pierre-Henri Gourgeon did not live up to the standards of “salary moderation and decency” that Mr Hollande wants to impose. Air France is going through a painful restructuring that will entail thousands of job losses.

Louis Gallois, the departing EADS chief executive and socialist supporter, warned that the pay cuts were going to be “steep” for some bosses and that such “crisis measures” must only be temporary, including Mr Hollande’s plan for a 75 per cent tax on yearly wages above €1m.

“We need to be more flexible than that,” he said, adding that it was “best left to companies to fix salaries”.

Pierre-Yves Gauthier of AlphaValue, a Paris-based corporate research group, said the measures “could almost have been put in place to create pressure on Mr Proglio”, whom some socialists would like removed because of his ties to Nicolas Sarkozy, the former president.

Well,since it only concerns state owned companies they can do all they want. What I get a kick from is how those commie idiots come up with those numbers. Why 20? Why not 15 or 27? Why Obongo wanted to keep kids of the age of 26 on parents insurance. You think there is any calculations behind it? Think again

If I was a CEO of such Co first thing I would do is double the janitor's salary. Fucking pinko degenerates

MadRusski wrote:

Well,since it only concerns state owned companies they can do all they want. What I get a kick from is how those commie idiots come up with those numbers. Why 20? Why not 15 or 27? Why Obongo wanted to keep kids of the age of 26 on parents insurance. You think there is any calculations behind it? Think again

If I was a CEO of such Co first thing I would do is double the janitor's salary. Fucking pinko degenerates

communism fuck Russia in the ass, they will never recover

long live the Third Reich

the French fucked up big time by voting for the socialist but then again it was the muslims who supported him

I AM THE SON OF DEUS

It is in the context of austerity - President and ministers take a 30% pay cut, there's gonna be cuts all across the board, it is expected that top executives at state-owned companies will have to give up some dough. After all, they will be much less affected than the rank and file by pay cuts.

muhad_eezbaq wrote:

It is in the context of austerity - President and ministers take a 30% pay cut, there's gonna be cuts all across the board, it is expected that top executives at state-owned companies will have to give up some dough. After all, they will be much less affected than the rank and file by pay cuts.

I have a mixed feeling about that ...
At least, they are giving the example to follow ... For once ...
Since ages ...

Well, perhaps it just mean those fucking internationalist traitors plans to sell our country once for good ... Or not ...

muhad_eezbaq wrote:

It is in the context of austerity - President and ministers take a 30% pay cut, there's gonna be cuts all across the board, it is expected that top executives at state-owned companies will have to give up some dough. After all, they will be much less affected than the rank and file by pay cuts.

30% pay cut for the President and ministers (the peasants clap)...

1300% increase to the 'fees' going across their greasy hands.

Shit is priceless.

"30% pay cut for the President and ministers (the peasants clap)"


But just before,Sarkozy had increased his salary 120% ...

simplefrench wrote:

"30% pay cut for the President and ministers (the peasants clap)"


But just before,Sarkozy had increased his salary 120% ...

And simple chimes in...showing all is not lost on him *lol*...

simplefrench wrote:

"30% pay cut for the President and ministers (the peasants clap)"


But just before,Sarkozy had increased his salary 120% ...

But wasn't Sarko fairly wealthy even before he took office?

simplefrench wrote:

"30% pay cut for the President and ministers (the peasants clap)"


But just before,Sarkozy had increased his salary 120% ...

Your car is on fire, stinky.