TMCnet Feature

An annual salary of $18.7 million doesn’t sound that bad to most Americans, but for AT&T (News - Alert) CEO Randall Stephenson that is what he earned after a cut in pay.

His 2011 total salary was trimmed by $2.08 million after the company’s attempt to acquire T-Mobile (News - Alert) USA fell apart late last year. The expected purchase price was valued at $39 billion, says TMCnet. The salary amounts are listed in new filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

As a result of failing to get the deal– which faced intense scrutiny from federal regulators – approved, AT&T had to pay $4.2 billion in cash and spectrum rights to T-Mobile. It was called a "break-up fee." In response, the company’s board of directors approved reducing the CEO’s bonus by 25 percent, and cut his stock award by six percent, according to The Associated Press. In comparison, Stephenson earned $20.2 million during 2010, The AP said.

The company said that for 2011 92 percent of Stephenson’s pay was performance-based, according to a report from Forbes.com.

In its crunching of the numbers, The Wall Street Journal estimated Stephenson's “total pay package” was $22.02 million in 2011, compared to $27.34 million in 2010. “The move was the first sign of any internal fallout from the failed deal,” The Journal reported in its analysis of the salary data.

In a related matter, Wayne Watts, AT&T’s general counsel, and Ralph de la Vega, AT&T's mobility head, also saw lower total compensation last year, The Journal said in its review of the SEC (News - Alert) filing. Watts earned $8.51 million down from $9.24 million. De la Vega earned $9.9 million, a reduction of about $1 million.

Stephenson, 51, is chairman, CEO and president of AT&T. He was first appointed in June 2007. He started working at the company in 1982 – gaining increasing responsibilities over the years.