The President and Chief Executive of Telenor Group, Jon Fredrik Baksaas earned NOK 17 million (USD 2.8 million) last year, according to the group’s annual report released on Tuesday. The pay packet came amid sweeping job cuts Telenor said were necessary to stay competitive, and moves by the government to limit bonuses and executive salaries in partially state-owned companies.
Baksaas earned three times his regularly salary in 2013 through bonuses, options and perks, reported Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK). He increased his total remuneration from 2012 by 6.8 percent, including a real earnings increase of 2.9 percent. As well as his wage of NOK 5.3 million, Baksaas received bonuses and incentives totaling NOK 4.98 million and perks worth NOK 1.24 million. He earned a pension worth more than NOK 3.2 million.
He exercised his remaining 100,000 share options in 2013, providing a taxable income of NOK 5.7 million. Taking the options into account, Baksaas’ earnings were more than NOK 17 million. The head of Telenor Norway, Berit Svendsen, increased her total remuneration by 19 percent to NOK 4.27 million last year.
Late last month Norway’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Monica Mæland, said her department was investigating ways to limit executive bonuses and salaries in companies where the government owns a large stake, such as Telenor. Mæland is the joint leader of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries (Nærings- og fiskeridepartementet) which is Telenor’s largest shareholder, owning 54 percent.
Telenor is Norway’s second largest listed company with a market value of over NOK 200 billion, reported NRK.
Meanwhile, Telenor cut almost 850 jobs since the start of 2014, 750 of them in Norway, in a bid to save money and remain competitive. Earlier this month unions accused the telecommunications giant of “social dumping” by outsourcing work to cheaper staff in Asia at the expense of Norwegian jobs and expertise.
newsinenglish.no staff
