S & P 5 00 C O M P A N I E S :  F E B  –  A P R I L  2 02 0

In response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, public companies are taking various measures to conserve liquidity. To date, 44 S&P 500 companies have cut director pay. All but six of these cuts have been exclusive to the cash portion of board compensation.

Our CompanyIQ^® director compensation database reveals that the overwhelming majority of S&P 500 companies that have cut director compensation did so by eliminating 100% of cash payments. However, the duration of cuts varied. Some appear to be indefinite while others are for two months only.

The hard hit retail and airline sectors acted quickly and aggressively in cutting director pay. Starting with Alaska Air Group eliminating 100% of director cash compensation back in March.