Thomas Staggs, chief financial officer of Walt Disney Co., received a healthy raise last year.
His salary climbed 26 percent to nearly $842,000, while his bonus jumped by a third to a cool $1 million, according to the company’s proxy. He also received $450,000 in stock units, up $25,000 from the total value of his stock units the prior year. Add the nearly $289,000 he netted from exercising stock options and then selling the stock, and the finance exec took home nearly $2.6 million in 2003.
In the proxy filing, the company added that it is close to a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission stemming from nepotism and other related-party transactions disclosed in an amendment to Disney’s 2001 annual report.
The issue involves the employment of adult children of three directors by the company, and of another director’s wife by a 50 percent-owned joint venture (whose employment preceded the director’s tenure); the provision of an office, secretary, and driver to one director following his retirement as CEO of Capital/Cities ABC Inc.; and payments to Air Shamrock Inc., a company controlled by a former director, in reimbursement for his business use of his private corporate jet.