Norway’s $1.7trn sovereign wealth fund said on Saturday (8 June) that it will vote against approving Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $56bn pay package.
The pay package goes to a shareholder vote next week after it was voided by a judge earlier this year, after being approved in 2018.
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Musk’s pay package was deemed unfair to shareholders by the judge, who labelled it an “unfathomable sum”.
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, Tesla’s eighth-biggest shareholder, voted against the package in 2018.
The fund said it appreciated “the significant value generated under Mr. Musk’s leadership since the grant date in 2018”.
However, concerns remained “about the total size of the award, the structure given performance triggers, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk,” Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the operator of the fund said.
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By GlobalData“We will continue to seek constructive dialogue with Tesla on this and other topics,” NBIM added.
The fund also stated that it would vote for a shareholder proposal which calls on Tesla to implement new policies related to freedom of association and collective bargaining.
This would mark a win for labour unions, as the company continues to face industrial action in Sweden from Tesla mechanics who have been striking since 27 October.
Tesla has urged shareholders to vote against the proposal, claiming that the company “is already committed to protecting its employees’ rights.”
In a letter to investors on Friday (7 June), Tesla chair Robyn Denholm said that Musk could step away from the company if the vote did not go his way as there were “other places” the boss could be spending his time.
Denholm wrote: “What we recognised in 2018 and continue to recognise today is that one thing Elon most certainly does not have is unlimited time. Nor does he face any shortage of ideas and other places he can make an incredible difference in the world.
“We want those ideas, that energy and that time to be at Tesla, for the benefit of you, our owners. But that requires reciprocal respect.”
