Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman Suffers $6.9 Million Pay Cut in 2015

Don’t expect Philippe Dauman to pick up any dinner tabs this year, fellow Viacom execs: The CEO saw his compensation fall 15.8 percent, to $36.9 million, in 2015.

OK, so that’s still a very hefty chunk of change, but Dauman had hauled in $43.8 million during 2014. If it makes Dauman feel any better, his ill-fallen boss, Sumner Redstone, had a far more dramatic drop, though the top executive hasn’t really done much work in recent years.

Dauman’s bonus came in at $14 million this year, down 30 percent from 2014’s $20 million. The chief executive officer’s 2015 salary was up slightly: $4 million versus $3.9 million. For 2015, Dauman’s annual equity award was $18.9 million; the prior year, it was a million bucks greater.

Also Read: Viacom Faces Activist Call for Sumner Redstone to Resign

Executive Chairman Redstone’s annual compensation in fiscal 2015 declined 85 percent, to $2 million, versus a total of $13 million in 2014. His salary was unchanged last year.

Redstone became ineligible to receive a bonus beginning in fiscal 2015 and has not been eligible to receive an annual equity award since fiscal 2012.

The company founder’s faltering health and mental capacity has been a hot topic for media analysts and Hollywood gossips alike recently.

Also Read: Apple CEO Tim Cook's Compensation Jumps a Million Bucks in 2015

Viacom’s announcement of its top executives’ salaries came as an unusual and preemptive strike before the company must disclose such numbers to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

It seems likely that the proactive revelation came about as an indirect response to Eric Jackson of New York hedge fund SpringOwl Asset Management, who called for the resignations of Redstone, Dauman and the entirety of Viacom’s board, in a 99-slide presentation on Tuesday.

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