http://www.watsonwyatt.com Latest Watson Wyatt Compensation Articles and News en-us Copyright 2009 Watson Wyatt Worldwide http://backend.userland.com/rss091 1/5/2009 9:24:33 PM 20 According to a new survey, the number of companies implementing cost-cutting measures has increased sharply in just two months. Among the changes are moves towards layoffs, hiring and salary freezes and smaller pay raises. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20311WASHINGTON, D.C., December 18, 2008 — The number of companies implementing cost-cutting measures, including layoffs, hiring and salary freezes and smaller pay raises, has risen sharply in just two months, according to a new survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20269With the recession showing no end in sight and the current spotlight on executive pay, many U.S. companies are cutting back on the annual bonuses and long-term incentives they pay their executives, according to a survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20218As the global financial crisis takes a tighter grip on the economy, some Canadian employers are bracing themselves for the looming economic slump. More than four in ten companies either have made or are planning layoffs or reductions (44%) and revising merit payments (42%) over the next year. According to the survey conducted in November 2008 by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm, employers are also ramping up employee communications and halting new staffing. The survey also indicates that while many companies are considering changes, less than 20% consider such changes to be significant. [CANADA - ENGLISH]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20240La crise financière mondiale resserre sa prise sur l’économie et certains employeurs canadiens se préparent en vue d'un marasme économique imminent. Plus de quatre entreprises sur dix procéderont, à moins qu’elles ne l’aient déjà fait, à des mises à pied ou à des réductions de l’effectif (44 %) et réviseront les augmentations au mérite (42 %) dans l’année à venir. D’après un sondage réalisé en novembre 2008 par Watson Wyatt, un chef de file mondial en matière de services-conseils, les employeurs augmentent également leurs communications aux employés et interrompent l’embauche de nouveau personnel. Le sondage précise que même si beaucoup d'entreprises considèrent apporter des changements, moins de 20 % d'entre elles estiment que ces changements sont significatifs. [CANADA - FRENCH]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20241Compensation committees at U.S. companies had been making significant adjustments to how they compensate their chief executives even prior to the recent financial crisis, according to an annual study by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20176When experts discuss the best path out of an economic downturn, they typically describe a back-to-basics approach. Recent statements by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, investment guru Warren Buffett and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown focus on the fundamentals of corporate value, market structure and investment theory. [GLOBAL]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20110The events of the past 12 months tell us at least one thing: Credit and shareholder value are interrelated. While the effects of deteriorating credit markets were first felt in the financial sector in the United States, there have been broader consequences across many nonfinancial sectors. The cost of borrowing has increased, and lenders are more selective when extending credit. The capital markets are skeptical of loans to even the largest, most creditworthy companies. [GLOBAL]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20095Despite new restrictions in the recently passed congressional bailout bill, compensation committees will not need to overhaul their core pay-for-performance programs. However, as the law might be expanded to cover all companies, they should assess and reconsider the necessity of their existing severance and change-in-control provisions in light of other compensation elements. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20074On Oct. 3, President Bush signed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA) of 2008 into law. The act is aimed at stabilizing the nation’s turbulent financial and credit markets by authorizing the secretary of the Treasury to purchase troubled mortgages, mortgage-backed securities and other assets from financial institutions, including pension plans. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=20002In the world of executive compensation, Congress has an inglorious history of passing laws to restrict compensation that achieve the opposite effect. Commentators often cite the million-dollar pay cap (in tax code section 162(m)) and the “golden parachute” excise tax (in section 280G) to prove the point. Rather than reduce executive compensation, companies simply shifted to stock option compensation in the 1990s (which is not subject to the million-dollar pay cap), and significant golden parachute payments (many that include tax gross-ups) remain very common. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19894As the impact of the global economic crisis takes hold, a quarter of U.S. employers expect to make layoffs in the next 12 months. However, most companies are focusing on increased employee communication and smaller cost-saving measures, according to a survey by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19962On Aug. 27, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted unanimously to propose a road map for shifting U.S. companies from U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP) to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The move to a global accounting language is intended to improve the comparability and transparency of financial reporting worldwide. It will also have important implications for U.S. employers in how they account for employee benefit and stock plans. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19704On Oct. 3, 2008, President Bush signed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA) of 2008 into law. Backed by USD 700 billion, the act is aimed at stabilizing American financial markets. The new law establishes the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and limits executive compensation in participating firms. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19998Total Pay for CEOs of H-Share companies, PRC incorporated companies listed on the Hong Kong exchange, increased by 36.7% at the median in 2007, a recent study by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm, found. Salaries increased by 15.7% and bonuses by 43.3%. This increase in Total Pay is higher than the 29.3% increase witnessed in 2006. In contrast, Total Pay for CEOs of Red-Chip companies basically stayed flat in 2007. [HONG KONG]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19756Employers believe changes to current pension accounting standards are necessary, but most are not in favour of the changes proposed in the International Accounting Standards Board’s (IASB’s) preliminary views paper, according to a recent survey by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a leading global consulting firm. [GLOBAL]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19699SINGAPORE, 3 September 2008 - Asia-Pacific sovereign pension funds grew by around 20 percent to US$1.8 trillion during 2007, according to Pensions & Investments and Watson Wyatt research, The P&I / Watson Wyatt global 300 ranking, conducted in conjunction with Pensions & Investments, a leading US investment newspaper. [SINGAPORE]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19693Companies are moving to make their executive pay programs more appealing to shareholders, according to an analysis of proxy statements released earlier this year. Survey findings show that companies are also looking at overhauling portions of their executive benefit plans and severance policies. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19673A growing number of U.S. companies are making their executive pay programs, as well as portions of their executive benefit plans and severance policies, more shareholder friendly, according to an analysis of 2008 company proxy statements by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a leading global consulting firm. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19641In Revenue Ruling 2008-29, the IRS provides guidance on when and how to withhold income taxes from supplemental wages such as commissions, severance pay and signing bonuses. The ruling presents different scenarios to clarify issues that have sometimes puzzled payroll departments. [UNITED STATES]http://www.watsonwyatt.com/search/parser.asp?ID=19576