Google paid its chairman Eric Schmidt $109 million last year, even when its stock was reeling. Co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have been keeping their pay at $1 for several years now, and the same was the case in 2014 as well, according to documents filed on Thursday with regulators.
Five-fold increase in pay for Schmidt
The compensation paid to Schmidt was comprised of stock worth $100 million. Prior to this, he was awarded a stock bundle worth $94 million in 2011, which was the highest until now. That was the time when he handed over the CEO position to Page.
Apart from the shares, Schmidt’s total compensation included other items such as a salary worth $1.25 million, a bonus amounting to $6 million and $1 million worth of perks. The total compensation pocketed by him last year was over five time more than his total pay in 2013 when Google paid him $19.3 million.
Schmidt not the highest paid executive at Google
Forbes declared that the 59-year old Schmidt is among the richest people in the world with fortunes estimated at $9 billion. A major chunk of his wealth comes from gains in Google stock, which he has owned since becoming the company’s CEO in 2001. However, despite receiving $109 million as compensation, he was not the highest paid executive at Google. Surprisingly, it was Omid Kordestani, who returned as chief business officer last year. Kordestani, who had been the number 11 employee at Google, left the company in 2009, says a report from The Wall Street Journal.
Google has been spending massively on projects that are far-flung, and this is a cause of serious concern to investors. Also the raise in pay has come at a time when the stock for the company is down 5%, giving investors more reasons to be concerned. For the same period, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has gained 11%. Digital content access has gradually shifted to smartphones and the tablets from PCs, and therefore, it has put a serious question mark on Google’s ability to retain its position as the dominant Internet search provider.
