Tyson exec gets $2.7M sign-on bonus

NATHAN OWENS

Stewart Glendinning, vice president and chief financial officer of Tyson Foods Inc., is being paid a sign-on bonus of $2.7 million and an annual salary of $750,000, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission document filed Wednesday.

The former president and chief executive officer of one of the world’s largest brewers, Molson Coors Brewing Com., Glendinning, 52, started work at Tyson Foods on Dec. 11.

He will be required to repay the bonus if he voluntarily leaves the company before his two-year anniversary with Tyson, according to the SEC document.

Business professors who study executive-level compensation said Glendinning’s salary package is typical.

“In terms of dollar amounts, that’s probably pretty reasonable for a position like that,” said Alan Ellstrand, associate dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

Compensation specifics were initially filed on Nov. 8, 2017, when Dennis Leatherby announced he would transfer his position and duties to Glendinning.

Wednesday’s filing made it official.

Leatherby had been with the company for 28 years. Before joining Tyson, Glendinning had held various positions at Molson since 2005.

The sign-on bonus compensates Glendinning until he has been with Tyson long enough to take advantage of the company’s incentives, Ellstrand said.

“That’s where the big money is,” he said.

Jason Ridge, associate professor at the Sam M. Walton College of Business, said Glendinning’s base salary is a bit high compared with what other food companies have been offering their CFOs.

“Glendinning’s additional responsibilities probably factored into that,” Ridges said.

Tyson’s equity programs and incentives eligible for Glendinning are listed in the filing.

Glendinning is eligible for equity awards that provide him with an annual cash allowance of $12,000 — which is taxable — relocation benefits, and a one-time payment of $1,000 for signing an employment agreement with Tyson. He has also been approved for a $300,000 stock option that will vest on Glendinning’s three-year anniversary.

After the incentives come into play, the bonuses aren’t that significant, Ellstrand said.

“If you want get the people you want, you’ve got pay some significant incentive to leave the previous employer to come work for you,” he said.