Proxy Season Global Briefing Part 4: Trends on Executive Pay

In the fourth installment of our Proxy Season Global Briefing, we provide a rundown of the headlines and key trends relating to executive pay from around the globe. Glass Lewis clients can also access the full report via the content libraries on Viewpoint and Governance Hub. For earlier installments in the series, read part one, part two, and part three.

Whether you call it compensation or remuneration, how — and how much — executives get paid remains a lightning rod for companies and investors around the world. Read on below for this year’s trends.

Shareholder Voting in the U.S., Canada, UK and Europe

• U.S. say-on-pay support and the number of failed votes was stable year-over-year, remaining down from a spike in opposition from 2021-2023.

• Pay-for-performance misalignment remained the most common reason for dissent.
  
  • Among the five failed proposals from S&P 500 companies, four had concerns around one-time awards; specifically, Molina Healthcare, Otis Worldwide Corporation, Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.

Figure 1. Comparison of Failed Say on Pay Proposals for Total U.S. Versus S&P 500

_{Source: Glass Lewis}

• Two Canadian say-on-pay proposals failed to receive majority support: First Majestic Silver Corp. (their third consecutive failure) and Aya Gold & Silver Inc.

• Large UK and European companies saw solid overall support, with notable dissent on some remuneration policies, but outright rejections were limited to a handful of remuneration reports.
  
  • Among blue-chip companies in Europe, three retrospective remuneration report proposals failed to receive majority support: Dutch BESI (for the 4th consecutive year), Italian Prysmian and Finnish Neste.
  • In the UK, three FTSE 350 remuneration reports did not gain majority shareholder support: Plus500 (for the 4th consecutive year), Melrose Industries and Spirent Communications.
  • More than one in ten remuneration report proposals in the UK and Europe received less than 20% dissent, with 11% of large companies in the UK and 13% in Continental Europe.

• Australian shareholder dissent remained high, with 40 S&P/ASX300 pay strikes (compared to 41 in 2023).
  
  • Australia’s most recent proxy season, when 13 companies received consecutive strikes, was in Q4 2024. It was five consecutive strikes in each of 2022 and 2023.
    
  • Of these, six companies have influential figures such as founders or major shareholders on the board, and two feature long-standing CEO-chair relationships, potentially reducing responsiveness to shareholder concerns.
  • Drivers for the pay strikes included preferential executive treatment, inappropriate incentive payouts, and retention awards.

Executive Pay Arrangements

Aggregate CEO fixed pay continues rising in Europe.

• On average, two out of every three companies increased fixed pay in either FY2024 or FY2025, or both.
• The banking sector stands out with almost nine in ten European lenders reviewing CEO fixed pay.
• In the UK, removal of the bonus cap led four of the Big Five banks to reduce fixed pay and increase variable pay limits instead, raising total pay by 43-57%. Only Standard Chartered received notable dissent.

• The Transatlantic pay gap remains in focus, particularly in the UK.
  
  • Ten FTSE 350 companies proposed U.S. style hybrid incentive plans that include a time-based award component (versus six hybrid plans in 2024).
  • Nine of those companies also increased total pay opportunity.
  • Rationales included retention, alignment with U.S./global peers, competitiveness and strategic alignment.
  • Hybrid plans continue to face significant shareholder opposition, with dissent ranging from 19%–34%.

• U.S. median CEO pay increases corresponded with increases in one-off awards.
  
  • The largest companies saw the largest increases: 9.2% for the S&P 500, versus 6.0% overall.
  • The size of one-time awards rose as well, with average values increasing by 18.2% in the S&P 500 (to USD 3,006,785) and by 7.7% in the Russell 3000 (to USD 1,697,668).

Figure 2. Summary of Median CEO Pay for S&P 500 Versus All U.S. Companies, 2020-2024

_{Source: Glass Lewis
Note: Data is in millions USD and reflects fiscal year 2024 data that was reported and voted on in 2025.}

• The prevalence of make-whole awards and disclosure around their determination also increased.
  
  • Over half of S&P 500 sign-on awards in 2025 were identified as make-whole, verus 38% in 2024.
  • The average value of make-whole awards was USD 3,705,945 among Russell 3000 companies, compared to USD 2,377,245 for sign-on awards overall.
  • Approximately 24% of Russell 3000 sign-on awards in 2025 included disclosure indicating consideration of forfeited awards from a prior employer, versus around 19% in 2024.

• In Canada, median pay for S&P/TSX 60 CEOs increased to CAD 12,354,107 (up 4.7%)
  
  • Shopify, Inc. CEO Tobias Lütke received CAD 225,425,274, roughly 4x the next highest CEO’s compensation.

Updated Pay for Performance Assessments in 2026

Beginning in 2026, Glass Lewis will apply an updated Pay for Performance methodology to companies listed in the U.S., Canada, the UK, Europe, and Australia, offering enhanced clarity and consistency in how executive compensation is assessed across regions. For companies and their advisors looking for deeper insights based on our new assessment framework, a new modeling tool allowing users to forecast scores and test pay scenarios is also available. Learn more here.