Ousted McDonald's CEO Easterbrook receives 6-month severance package
FOX Business’ Grady Trimble reports from McDonald’s headquarters on the departure of the company’s CEO Steve Easterbrook and the challenges his replacement will face.
Outgoing McDonald’s president and CEO Stephen Easterbrook is eligible for a half year of severance paid at the end of the six-month period after he was pushed out of the company for violating its policy by having a consensual relationship with a coworker, according to the separation agreement filed Monday morning.
Though no dollar amount has officially been provided, his 26-week compensation is estimated to be approximately $675,000, based on last year's salary, but will also depend largely on how the fast-food company’s stock performs. As part of the agreement, Easterbrook is barred from working for a competitor for two years.
A spokesperson for Easterbrook did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
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As CEO, Easterbrook's base salary ranged from $1.26 million in 2016 to $1.34 million in 2018.
Former Ted Cruz campaign pollster Chris Wilson, Stanford School of Business lecturer Dave Dodson and Politico congressional reporter Melanie Zanona discuss the firing of McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook and Chief People Officer David Fairhurst over Easterbrook’s romantic relationship with a subordinate.
He made just under $16 million in total compensation in 2018, a decrease from his 2017 compensation of $21.7 million.
He’ll be able to keep his health insurance for 18 months if he chooses to do so.
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McDonald’s board of directors voted on Easterbrook’s departure Friday after conducting a thorough review. He will also be leaving the company’s board. Easterbrook, who was CEO since 2015, acknowledged the relationship in an email to employees.
MCDONALD’S CEO PUSHED OUT AFTER RELATIONSHIP WITH EMPLOYEE
“Given the values of the company, I agree with the board that it is time for me to move on,” he wrote in the email.
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The fast-food giant said Easterbrook demonstrated poor judgment, and that McDonald’s forbids managers from having romantic relationships with direct or indirect subordinates.
Its board of directors named former McDonald's USA president Chris Kempczinski Easterbrook's successor.
McDonald's said Monday that Kempczinski's base salary will be $1.25 million, or 58 percent higher than his 2018 compensation.
Who is Steve Easterbrook?
Easterbrook, 52, attended Durham University where he played cricket and ultimately graduated with a degree in Natural Sciences, according to a cached version of his leadership page, which was removed following his ouster.
He first began working for McDonald’s in 1993 in London, with his first gig with the company being a financial reporting manager.
Easterbrook was promoted from chief brand officer to CEO and president in 2015, succeeding Don Thompson at a time when “the world’s largest restaurant company” was experiencing a slump in domestic sales.
He vowed to reorganize the company to make the company better fit to react to the changes in the industry. Within months the company had cut roughly 350 jobs, including more than 200 corporate roles, as a push to revamp business.
Under his watch, McDonald’s partnered with Uber Eats to make its food deliverable to people who might be unable or unwilling to travel to the nearest restaurant location, according to a Bloomberg report.
Easterbrook, who called himself “a Quarter Pounder guy,” told Bloomberg at the end of September he anticipated the delivery partnership would bring in roughly $4 billion in sales by year’s end.
Before his role at the head of the company, Easterbrook also served as president of McDonald’s Europe and CEO of McDonald’s UK.
In addition to his more than 20 years working for Easterbrook also had brief stints as an executive for UK-based chains PizzaExpress Limited and Wagamama, according to the leadership page.
Easterbrook’s brother-in-law Mark Baxter quipped to the Daily Mail on Monday that the ousted CEO “has been a naughty boy.”
“We heard on Sunday that he had been fired,” said the 55-year-old farmer, who is married to Easterbrook’s sister. “We don't know any other details. My wife keeps in contact but we have not seen him for a while.”
A father of three daughters, Easterbrook and his ex-wife Susie divorced in 2015.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.