According to a Securities & Exchanges Commission form filed by WPP yesterday, Meyer has signed a new employment agreement lasting until the end of 2006, but this agreement then automatically extends for successive one-year periods, unless Meyer provides three months' notice. He retains the title chairman and chief executive officer of Grey.
On the downside, Meyer is taking a paycut, with his basic salary falling from $3.65m annually to a meagre $1m.
However, he is unlikely to find himself scrabbling for pennies at the end of the month, because he will also receive a payout of $51.8m on completion of the merger. The payment represents deferred compensation and pension earned by Meyer over the past 10 years.
The filing states that Grey will pay Meyer a further settlement of $22.7m upon completion of the merger, as well as $12.4m in payments relating to golden parachute excise taxes, as long as the merger is completed this year, bringing his total payment to $86.9m.
Should Meyer leave the company, which he shows no signs of doing at this stage, he will also be given a severance payment of $22.7m. If WPP decides to get rid of him this year, they will pay him $12.4m, but if they wait until 2005, the amount falls to $9m.
Along with the huge sum of cash he will earn from the merger, Meyer still has stock in Grey worth over $350m. Meyer, who is aged 77, has been running Grey since 1970.
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