"Senior Israel Chemicals (TASE: ICL: NYSE: ICL) executives are afraid," ICL-Israel general manager Avner Maimon told Liat Ron in an interview on Radio 102FM.
Maiman was commenting on the public storm aroused by Israel Chemicals' announcement that it planned to fire 140 employees. He said, "We're not talking about laying off 140 workers. That's spin. This is the ultra-respectable early retirement of 80 of the 140 workers… executive salaries at Israel Chemicals are at the globally prevalent level. What are not at a globally prevalent level are the salaries of the employees at Bromine Compounds, which are the highest in the world."
Liat Ron: Are you talking about conditions? How do you explain the fact that your CEO, Stefan Borgas, earns NIS 4.28 million a quarter, which is NIS 53,000 a day?
Maimon: "He's an international executive who moved to Israel. We have to decide whether or not we want internationality in our small country. The figures published in the press are inflated, and include options, which aren't always in the money, and to more than a slight extent are a will-o'-the-wisp."
The cost of Borgas's salary in 2013 was $5.5 million, including $1 million in salary, $1.7 million in bonuses, and $2.3 million in options, for which Israel Chemical made a provision in its financial statements, indicating that the company does not regard the options as a will-o'-the-wisp. Borgas's salary for 2014 will be published in the full Israel Chemicals financial statements in the near future.
You go around with a bodyguard. Are you afraid?
"That's true. I have a bodyguard in front of my house in the evening. That's because illegal demonstrations are being held in front of my home, as well as in front of the homes of other executives. They have stooped to making unprecedented direct threats against the child of one of the Israel Chemicals senior executives. They have sent threatening text messages and damaged property. I just can't understand it: why are they reacting with such extreme emotions? I don't think it's possible to understand this latent violence. You ask me if we're afraid? To some extent, yes, because all the red lines have been crossed.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 17, 2015
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