David Zaslav Is Getting a Pay Lower

David Zaslav, the unlucky CEO of the corporate previously referred to as Warner Bros. Discovery (the corporate, which was as soon as two separate corporations however grew to become one, is splitting up again), has usually been accused of being dangerous at his job and, now, it could seem that the individuals who pay his wage might agree.

A new report from Deadline finds that Zaslav is scheduled to obtain a large pay reduce this yr. Citing a current SEC submitting, Deadline notes {that a} new enterprise settlement will “considerably cut back his goal annual compensation, together with decreasing his annual money compensation alternative and reorienting the whole pay combine towards long-term incentives.” This shift will “foster a stronger alignment with stockholders and incentivize sustained, long-term worth creation,” the doc says.

In 2023, Zaslav’s compensation bundle was boosted considerably from what it had been in 2022. Zaslav acquired a bundle price roughly $50 million. That represented a 26.5 percent increase over the previous yr during which he reportedly made a complete of $39.2 million. These payouts paled compared to 2021, when Zaslav technically made $246 million from inventory choices appended to a brand new, multi-year employment contract with the corporate.

Now, Zaslav can have his wages slashed and capped, in order to higher “align” them with a “pay-for-performance” mannequin championed by shareholders, an announcement from WBD Board Chair Samuel A. Di Piazza Jr. instructed Deadline. The outlet expounds on Zaslav’s new pay thusly:

After the separation, Zaslav can have a contract by December 31, 2030, and a base wage of $3 million a yr. His goal annual money bonus alternative can be decreased to $6 million, with the precise payout based mostly on the achievement of efficiency objectives established by Streaming & Studios’ compensation committee. The annual bonus payout is topic to a cap of 200% of the goal quantity. Zaslav may also qualify for annual fairness awards following the separation below the Streaming & Studios firm’s fairness incentive plan. The goal worth of the awards can be $15.5 million within the first yr that Zaslav receives an fairness grant from Streaming & Studios and can decline to an annual goal worth of $7.5 million per yr thereafter.

Zaslav assumed energy at Warner Bros. Discovery instantly after the merger between the 2, and his technique (which has usually been criticized by shoppers and followers alike) was to start chopping bills and initiatives whereas overseeing a lot of layoffs. The re-splitting of the corporate has been mocked fairly a bit on-line, although Zaslav has put a contented spin on the event: “The cultural significance of this nice firm and the impactful tales it has delivered to life for greater than a century have touched numerous folks everywhere in the world,” he mentioned, in an announcement related to the break up. “It’s a treasured legacy we are going to proudly proceed on this subsequent chapter of our celebrated historical past.”