Amazon shareholders reject proposal to separate CEO and chair roles

Amazon shareholders rejected a proposal to undertake a coverage that may require the corporate’s CEO and board chair roles to stay separate.

Vote totals disclosed in a submitting Thursday present about 82% of shareholders rejected the proposal. The impartial proposal was submitted alongside seven others at Amazon’s annual assembly on Wednesday. Every of the impartial proposals had been rejected.

Amazon cut up the roles of CEO and board chair when founder Jeff Bezos turned the helm over to Andy Jassy in 2021. As a part of the transition, Bezos retained the title of government chairman.

The proposal sought to codify that construction inside Amazon “like nearly all of S&P 500 corporations,” advocacy group the Accountability Board wrote in its submission. The group argued that the cut up construction permits the board to deal with company governance and oversight, whereas the CEO focuses on the corporate’s enterprise.

“With the positions at the moment separated, now can be an opportune time to take action,” the proxy states.

Shareholder proposals in search of the separation of board chair and CEO roles have been on the rise in recent times. The variety of such proposals elevated 113% amongst Russell 3000 corporations within the first half of 2023, the very best stage prior to now decade, in keeping with the Harvard Legislation Faculty Discussion board on Company Governance.

Amazon urged shareholders to vote in opposition to the proposal, saying the present coverage allows the board to find out the correct management for the corporate “in gentle of our particular circumstances at any given time.”

The separation in 2021 got here “after cautious consideration” of Amazon’s management construction and features, the corporate wrote in its advice.

“In gentle of our success by these numerous management buildings, the board believes that shareholders are higher served by the board retaining the power to adapt to our evolving wants and implement the optimum management construction at any given time,” Amazon wrote within the submitting.

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