Unicaja Banco celebrated extraordinary general meeting of shareholders The meeting scheduled for Tuesday, November 14, where the appointment of Isidro Rubiales as the new CEO of the financial institution was approved and the remuneration policy for board members for the next three years was approved. All issues on the agenda were discussed with the support of more than 97% of the capital accredited to the meeting. a majority of 72.23% of the capital Your being.
While the meeting was being held, a protest rally was held in front of Unicaja Banco’s headquarters in Malaga, attended by delegates from various unions, demanding improved working conditions.
The shareholders’ meeting thus approved the appointment of Rubiales as CEO of Unicaja Banco (a position he has held since last September) and the appointment of independent directors in recent months. Rocío Fernández, Nuria Aliño, Antonio Carrascosa And Ines Guzman.
In this way, the renewal of the board of directors is completed, if the vacancy left after the resignation of the special director representing Oceanwood last August, following the separation of this fund from the shareholding of Unicaja Banco, is not filled. In this sense, the shareholders’ meeting also approved the temporary retention of the existing membership so that it can be met by the joint election of a new independent member, whose election process has been initiated.
“A new phase and model in management”
Unicaja Banco president Manuel Azuaga announced the start of Rubiales’ appointment as CEO “A new phase and model in management” and your purpose “Stimulating business activity” and “strengthening” the ability to produce resultsTo ensure the continuity of the trajectory of “financial soundness and connections to the regions” in which the organization operates. He specifically referred to the regions of origin where Unicaja aims to “continue to be the reference entity”. And he saw the future of existence as a project “unitary, autonomous and independent” It has the ability to create a “road map with growth potential.”
Azuaga recalled that Rubiales had been with the bank for more than 30 years and had “extensive experience” in senior management positions and various related fields.
“His career demonstrates his complete knowledge of the structure, organization, functioning and evolution of existence, which High strategic vision of the business and a clear confrontation ability scenarios and challenges in the current context “The financial sector,” he said.
Regarding the four independent directors whose appointments were also approved, the chairman assured that they were “experts”. recognized prestige and proven experience”.
Azuaga explained it this way: vacancies Both the disapproval of two independent directors appointed under former CEO Manuel Menéndez and some recorded resignations remain. Meanwhile, there was also a change in the bank’s governance; Following the agreement on the merger project through merger with Liberbank, the chairmanship of the board held by Azuaga changed from executive to non-executive position. . .
“This is a complex and difficult process “This has been achieved over a longer than reasonable period of time, with a particularly concentrated effort worthy of the recognition of the appointments committee.” higher standards of corporate governance The structure and diversity of knowledge in terms of experiences, gender and age”.
CEO Isidro Rubiales thanked the support received, the trust of customers and the work of 7,600 employees, saying: “A very important period”. He also confirmed his commitments. “basic column” He underlined that the team represents and ensures that it keeps the negotiation offer open, while also focusing on: “on profitable growth and sustainable returns”.
board fee
pinned on Maximum annual fee amount is 1.95 million euros without regard to the remuneration received by all directors in this capacity, that is, for the performance of their executive functions. Thus, this amount also includes the gross 300 thousand euros determined as the annual salary for president Manuel Azuaga, who has been categorized as ‘non-executive’ since the end of September.
As stated in the remuneration policy for the period 2021-2023, the maximum amount was determined as 950,000 gross euros, but after the merger with Liberbank in July 2021, it was increased to 1.1 million euros gross in order to adapt this amount. Since the number of members of the council increased from 12 to 15 after the operation, the number of new managers was increased.
Once approved, the new maximum will be effective through fiscal year 2024, but will be updated in 2025 and 2026 based on the salary review percentage established in the applicable collective agreement for the organization’s employees. It will remain in effect until the board agrees to change it.
Shareholders also authorized the executive directors to deliver the senior share portfolio worth €1.2 million during the validity period of the remuneration policy and provided that they meet the specified conditions.
Unrest in the team
On the occasion of the shareholders meeting, union headquarters organized a protest event in front of the headquarters of Unicaja Banco, demanding better working conditions for the workforce.
Union representatives during the speech to shareholders Total +, Cesica and CCOO (representing some minor shareholders) stated: “Despair, exhaustion and lack of identity” They said staff had “reached their limit” and called for the situation to be reversed “urgently”.
“It is urgent to reach agreement on important issues such as the remuneration policy. We must eliminate the internal salary gap in Unicaja and move towards a single, fair and transparent remuneration model,” said the general secretary of the CCOO in Unicaja. Maribel Coffin.
Unions also expressed their dissatisfaction with the maximum increase in the annual salaries of board members. This corresponds to 63%Added to this is the revaluation agreed upon in the next agreement.
“Simultaneously, Unicaja Banco is denying workers a salary increase in order to correct the gap with salaries in the industry,” Cesica’s president said. Raul Lara.
Secretary general of the UGT at Unicaja Banco, Ruben Miguel de AndrésHe stated that their demands were aimed at the proper functioning of the institution and “an agreement for the future”.
“What we want is for Unicaja to become Unicaja again; when we integrated and incorporated Liberbank, they introduced a number of measures that we believe are outdated and They damage our day-to-day employment relationship and the relationship between workers and customers.“We believe it is necessary for the new CEO to eliminate these measures as soon as possible.” One of the measures requested is the elimination of the “salary gap” between former Liberbank employees and Unicaja employees.
On the other hand, they demand salary parity with other similar institutions. “We have a 60 percent wage difference compared to the salaries of other workers,” he said.
Unicaja Banco’s response
In response to these approaches, the Unicaja president denied that the wage increase was 63 percent, but stated that it would be increased. “just over 10 percent” It is thought that the planned maximum remuneration for all executives, including the CEO, will increase from 2.9 to 3.2 million euros.
“The maximum expected pay is close to best market practice as detailed in the remuneration committee’s report. The maximum pay offered remains in the lowest wage range among other comparable establishments“Azuaga defended.
On the other hand, Rubiales reminded shareholders that “one of the first things” he did after his appointment as CEO was to meet with unions.
“I am an employee of the bank and I will always continue to feel like an employee. I know that it is the basic engine of achieving goalsHe gave the reassurance before stressing that the negotiation offer “remains open”.
Source: Informacion
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