Investors back Impey contract

By PAM GRAHAM

CanWest MediaWorks boss Brett Impey's six-month notice period is not a problem for prospective investors in the current share offer, despite trends away from such contracts.

"We see him as crucial to the business and I am not sure if we would be investing without him there," said Paul Glass of Brook Asset Management.

By all means lock him in, he said.

In Britain, notice periods on contracts of employees of listed companies are one year or less under a code of practice. If they are longer than that they should reduce back to one year after an initial period.

Impey said he could be "terminated" at any time without compensation if he "did naughty things".

Impey is entitled to a one-time payment if before August 31, 2009, CanWest Global Group sells all of its shares to a takeover bidder, ceases to own 30 per cent, or is no longer the largest shareholder or loses a majority position on the board.

That payment is for 2 per cent of the amount by which the enterprise value of the company has increased and is a maximum $3 million.

Bruce Sheppard of the New Zealand Shareholders' Association has issues with approval of executive remuneration by existing shareholders of a business later floated on the stock exchange.

Under NZX rules shareholders have to approve pay packages in excess of 0.5 per cent of a company's net assets or market capitalisation.

Impey's package is not disclosed in the prospectus, but it will be in the annual report because he is a director of the company.

It was less than the 0.5 per cent threshold, a float adviser said.

Sheppard said that in 99 per cent of cases shareholders approved pay packages.

The issue for him was disclosure. The entire employment contract was put to shareholders, making for good disclosure. "We're not hung up on how much people earn so long as they do a decent day's work. We are hung up about knowing how they are paid," he said.

Impey said TV3 newsreaders Carol Hirschfeld and John Campbell were "locked in" but he would not disclose details of their contracts.

Roger Kerr of the Business Roundtable is against prescriptive rules on pay.

In notes sent to Sheppard, he said envy and greed could drive public attention to the detriment of a focus on shareholder value and business strategy.