HUL’s Sanjiv Mehta’s Salary Drops 21% In FY21

Sanjiv Mehta, chairman at Hindustan Unilever Ltd., saw his pay fall by about a fifth last fiscal as the pandemic impacted the performance of India's largest consumer goods maker.

Mehta's salary fell 21% to Rs 15.35 crore, according to the company's annual report released on Thursday.

In an emailed response to BloombergQuint, HUL's spokesperson said, “Unilever's compensation comprises fixed salary, annual variable pay linked to individual and company performance, and long-term incentives, which vest basis a four-year performance cycle of Unilever.”

As chairman-HUL, president-South Asia, and Unilever Leadership Executive member, Mehta is rewarded on the business performance of HUL, Unilever South Asia and Unilever, the spokesperson said. “The lower compensation reflects the drop in bonus pool and LTI vesting factor, both of which are linked to overall company performance.”

Mehta's salary is 122 times the median pay of HUL employees.

The company increased the salary of employees other than the managerial personnel by an average 3.4% in FY21, according to the annual report. For the management committee, the average hike was 4%.

To recognise efforts of frontline sales force and factory-based employees during the pandemic, HUL also granted a one-time special cash award for them.

The company's revenue rose 18% to Rs 45,311 crore in FY21, according to its filings. Net profit also rose 18% to Rs 7,954 crore.