N.Y. State Pension Fund, Coca-Cola in Pact on Executive Pay

By Colin Kellaher

The third-largest U.S. public pension fund said it is withdrawing a shareholder resolution on executive pay at Coca-Cola Co. after the beverage giant agreed to consider the wages it pays all of its employees when setting executive salaries.

The New York State Common Retirement Fund said pay for corporate executives has dramatically outpaced wages for most other employees in recent years, and that it is encouraging companies to adopt compensation policies that take their entire workforce into consideration.

The fund said Coca-Cola agreed to add language to its proxy statement that says the compensation approach used to set executive pay will be the same approach used in determining compensation for the broader workforce.

"I commend Coca-Cola for taking this step to help ensure that pay for its top executives is in line with the company's overall compensation philosophy and long term performance, not simply on what executives at other companies are making," said New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, the fund's trustee.

Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 06, 2020 11:02 ET (16:02 GMT)

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