Lehman Grants Mid-Year "Bonus"
But Here's The Catch: It's In Lehman Stock

Posted by John Carney, Jul 02, 2008, 4:46pm

After last week's unanswered question about how--and whether--Lehman Brothers would be able to pay its employees as compensation costs for the early months of the year outpaced revenues, Lehman is awarding its employees with mid-year stock bonuses, according to the Wall Street Journal. Employees will get the equivalent of 20% of the stock award they received in 2000. They're calling it a "downpayment" and a reward for employees who have stuck it out at the firm.

Those employed at the Fraternal Order of Lehman had better learn to love stock bonuses because a much bigger proportion of this years bonus will be in stock, Bloomberg reports. The ratio of stock awards will rise to a maximum of 65 percent of total compensation from 50 percent, according to some "person with knowledge of the matter."

Lehman employees to get mid-year bonuses [Market Watch]

Lehman Raises Stock Portion of Staff Pay, Person Says [Bloomberg]

0Recommend this! 23Comments

Tags: Bonus, Lehman

Comments

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:11PM

2000?

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:11PM

2000?

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:17PM

2007...read the article

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:22PM

Hint for Carney

Press Control & C to Copy
Press Control & V to Paste

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:35PM

That would be like me paying the deckhands in crab, but they could only sell it once it died.

Fake Sig Hansen
Skipper, F/V Northwestern

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 5:40PM

Was gonna make the obligatory "giving away free deck furniture on a sinking ship" comment but 5:35 beat me to it. Nice call on Sig: best captain on the best show on the best network on TV.

Posted by John Carney, Jul 02, 2008 5:55PM

@5:22: Press "S" Control "I" to SUCK IT.

We were damn clear where this fucking story came from: the Journal and Bloomberg. I award you no bonus.

Look, go read a blank wall. You might learn something. It's bound to be more interesting than you are now.

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 6:03PM

Don't fish angry.

Fake Sig Hansen
Skipper, F/V Northwestern

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 6:05PM

WOW!! No more Red Bull.

I was talking about the glaring typo that had me confused as shit. If you copy and paste the shit you steal, you will have fewer typos.

Posted by american bandersnatch, Jul 02, 2008 6:09PM

6:05 - were you really that confused by the typo?

Are Lehman employees allowed to buy puts on Lehman stock?

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 6:14PM

AB,
1. You must not know what a put is.
2. Sentences should be intelligible.
3. Carney doesn't need you to carry his water for him.

Posted by John Carney, Jul 02, 2008 6:19PM

All is forgiven. I'm still bitter we got beat to this story. And maybe feeling a little guilty about spending the whole week on the beach. It's almost the long-weekend. Let's all drink, drink and be merry.

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 6:45PM

How soon till the other banks follow with the same idea? Has UBS announced any bonus numbers -- maybe they will award days off instead of a bonus?

Posted by a dead horse, Jul 02, 2008 6:47PM

I hope they at least get the certificates, a bonus of TP is (just barely) better than no bonus at all.

Carney, I'd guess you didn't get the news early because the Lehman people probably don't read Dealbreaker. Read DB (like Goldman)? Success. Don't read DB (like Lehman)? TP for bonuses.

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 6:58PM

Drexel pulled the same shit back in '89.

Just sayin'....

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 7:31PM

dude, i posted this to one of the pther story's message boards before bloomberg and the wsj had it -- just go look....

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2008 8:33PM

leh must merge with c to survive!

btw, can someone from ms (or msdw) throw some hate towards bove??? i thought we walked purcell, marin, and the rest of those mckinsey fucks out to the pasture and put em down for good. who is this muppet coming out saying he could be a saviour?! even if it is wackovia or some commercial bank, do we really want this JO back in the mix???

Posted by guest, Jul 03, 2008 12:33AM

6:58
Drexel pulled the same shit and died soon thereafter.

Posted by guest, Jul 03, 2008 5:18AM

Classic. Very likely the very people who caused the problems will be rewarded to stay. WHY? I worked at the firm years ago, and "once golden, always golden." This unwarranted loyalty will be the end of a lot of these firms. Funny, if these people were TRULY so smart, they would have known to diversify/divest. I feel worst for the people low on the totem-pole (you know, those not living in full-floor Park Avenue apartments). I don't think America yet grasps the excesses at these Manhattan firms. Crazy - especially when the company is doing so poorly/failing!

Posted by guest, Jul 03, 2008 7:42AM

Hello people. THERE IS NO BONUS. This is actually the employees getting fucked in a new and evil way:

#1: We get 20% of our 2007 stock comp. For many people, that's going to be about 4% of 2007 TC, invested at 20.96, vesting over 3 1/2 years.

#2: The vesting schedule for equivalent amounts of stock is now slightly slower by the second year (33/33/33 vs 0,75,0,0,25).

#3: They can now take all of that restricted cash that they were saving for our bonuses and put it back in the balance sheet.

#4: If you quit before 11/2009, you still get 0.


The net effect of this is that you get some of your RSUs at what might be a good price.


Posted by Old Sneep, Jul 03, 2008 8:36AM

RSU + LEH = RIP

Posted by guest, Jul 03, 2008 8:39AM

Wow, Lehmam have truly and royally bent their employees over and buggered them with this one.

Enjoy your fisting, chaps.

Posted by guest, Jul 03, 2008 9:07AM

lol. what are you guys thinking about DB breaking stories. Don't you know that ALL NEWS is broken by the Gasbagarumor on CNBC. Says it every time he is on the air. lol

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