Payoffs for layoffs? An examination of CEO relative pay and firm performance surrounding layoff announcements

• Published in: Personnel psychology Vol. 72; no. 1; pp. 81 - 106
• Main Authors: Bentley, F. Scott, Fulmer, Ingrid S., Kehoe, Rebecca R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Durham Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2019
• Subjects: CEO pay; Chief executive officers; Comparative studies; firm performance; Human resource management; layoffs; Peers; Programmers; social comparisons

In this study, we theorize that chief executive officers’ (CEOs’) peer pay comparisons influence their decisions to engage in layoffs, and we consider the conditions under which layoffs deliver “payoffs” in the form of increases in subsequent CEO relative pay. Our results indicate that CEOs receivin...