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Occidental Agrees to Hold Annual Pay VoteSubmitted by: Ted Allen, Publications

Occidental Petroleum, which has faced shareholder dissent over its pay practices, has agreed to hold an advisory vote on compensation at its 2010 annual meeting and support federal ?say on pay? legislation.

?We welcome ongoing input from our stockholders. Oxy's Board of Directors strives to maintain an ongoing, constructive dialogue with the goal of achieving continuous improvement in all aspects of our corporate governance, including executive compensation,? Ray R. Irani, the company?s chairman and chief executive officer, said in a Jan. 26 press release.

In response to the company?s decision, the Needmor Fund and various Catholic groups agreed to withdraw their resolution seeking an advisory vote. A Needmor ?say on pay? proposal received 44.4 percent support at Occidental in 2008. The AFL-CIO and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees also withdrew 2009 resolutions that seek a ?hold until retirement? policy for executive equity incentives and a vote on future ?golden coffin? benefits.

?Allowing shareholders to provide input on executive compensation packages is more important than ever in the current economic environment,? Daniel F. Pedrotty, director of the AFL-CIO?s Office of Investment, said in the company?s press release.

Los Angeles-based Occidental is the 14th U.S. company to agree to an annual ?say on pay? vote or permit shareholders to vote to establish that process (which Hewlett-Packard plans to do). In addition, Schering-Plough has said it will survey investors on its pay practices.

In addition to the shareholder proposals, it appears that investor dissent over Irani?s past compensation may have prompted Occidental to hold an advisory vote. Pay committee members received at least 24.5 percent withhold votes last year and faced 35 percent opposition in 2007. Irani has been one of the highest-paid U.S. chief executives; he received $34.2 million in total compensation in 2007 and $59.05 million in 2006.

Investors plan to file more than 100 ?say on pay? proposals this year. Those resolutions went to a vote at 79 companies in 2008 and averaged about 42 percent support, according to RiskMetrics Group data.

Full post as published by Institutional Shareholder Services -- Corporate Governance Blog on January 27, 2009 (boomark / email).