Idaho CEOs get pay increases

BOISE (AP) - Pay increases for CEOs at Idaho's top 12 companies whose stock is publicly traded increased an average of 12 percent in 2009.

The Idaho Statesman reports the increase came mostly in the form of performance-based compensation and bonuses in cash and stock.

Hecla Mining Co.'s Phillips Baker Jr. led with $1.8 million in cash and about $900,000 in stock, plus other compensation, for total pay of $3.2 million, 62 percent more than in 2008.

But total overall pay for Micron's Steve Appleton declined 22 percent to $2.5 million.

The newspaper surveyed executive pay for Idaho companies whose stocks trade on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq stock market or the American Stock Exchange by using proxy statements and annual reports.

Peter Oppermann, a New York-based partner in Mercer, a global human resource consulting firm, said companies have been tying executive pay to results.

"Company performance, and the value executives received last year, was down 20-30 percent," he told the newspaper.

He said companies are increasing performance stock rewards while reducing perks. Stock rewards, he said, are only valuable to an executive when the company's stock price rises, and often the executive can only buy and sell it when the stock price stays above a certain level.

"There is far less reliance on stock options, more on performance shares, which generally tie the company's performance to how well the stock does," Oppermann said.

Hecla did well in 2009, seeing net income increase to $67.8 million after a net loss of $66.6 million in 2008.

The company increased silver production last year by 26 percent to a record 10.9 million ounces. The company produced record amounts of lead and zinc as well. Gold production was also up.

At Micron, 11 consecutive quarters of losing money led the company to end manufacturing in Boise and to lay off about half its Boise work force in the past few years. But in the last two quarters, Micron has shown profits.

At Coldwater Creek, which has struggled recently, co-founder Dennis Pence is working for just $1 a year after making $738,462 as CEO in 2007. He wasn't the CEO in 2008 but returned in 2009 to guide the company.

Alexander Toeldte, President and CEO of Boise Inc., formerly Boise Cascade, made $2.6 million in 2009.

Dennis Wheeler, chairman, president and CEO of Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp., made $2.53 million.

And LaMont Keen, President and CEO IdaCorp and Idaho Power Co., made $2.1 million in 2009.