Tepco ex-execs get golden parachute

Tony Hayward is out as CEO of BP after the company's disastrous oil spill. He stands to walk away with a compensation package that includes about $1.5 million in salary, and a pension worth $17 million. That will seem like an unforgivable sum to many people. But as "golden parachutes" go, his deal is actually quite modest.

Exorbitant payouts to chief executives of companies that have been acquired are becoming a new kind of parachute and they are even more lucrative than getting sacked.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pay practices, such as excessive golden parachutes, golden coffins and multi-year employment agreements with generous severances, should be avoided, a report on compensation to be released on Monday said.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is preparing to settle with three former executives who ran Washington Mutual, the biggest bank failure in U.S. history, for the return of $64 million worth of golden parachutes, bonuses and retirement funds.

At least four chief executives are in line for payouts of more than $50 million from "golden parachutes" opened by pending acquisitions, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of SEC filings.

At least four chief executives are in line for payouts of more than $50 million from "golden parachutes" opened by pending acquisitions, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of SEC filings.