American Airlines CEO Robert Isom is getting a bonus after a “successful post-pandemic transformation” and taking the helm of one of the largest airlines in the world last year, according to a regulatory filing on Thursday.
Isom, who stepped into the job in March 2022, is getting a $2.75 million bonus and $8.25 million worth of restricted stock grants aimed at incentivizing the CEO to keep the company performing during his tenure.
Isom is making a base salary of $1.3 million along with a $2.6 million potential bonus and a long-term incentive grant of $11.25 million. Isom’s total compensation was $4.89 million in 2022, about $115,000 less than he made in 2021 when he was the company’s president.
Also getting a pay bump at American is Stephen Johnson, vice chair and chief strategy officer to reflect his expanded roles over the airline’s regional carriers and cargo business, according to the filing.
Johnson, who took the job in May, will get a base salary of $850,000, a target cash incentive opportunity of $1.2 million and a long-term incentive grant of $3.68 million. He is also getting a one-time grant of 181,554 restricted stock units. Johnson previously had a base salary of $500,000.
Beginning Sept. 20, Isom, Johnson and David Seymour, chief operating officer at American, all enter restrictive covenant agreements and severance agreements, as well. Johnson made $3.49 million last year, while chief operating officer David Seymour made $3.17 million in total compensation in 2022.
Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan received a 75% pay and compensation increase in his first year on the job, a year that ended in an epic debacle as the carrier’s operations melted down during the holidays. He made $5.33 million in total compensation for 2022 which was below the $9 million in total pay, stock awards and other benefits he could have potentially earned for the year, but higher than the $3.05 million he made the year before when he was the executive vice president of corporate services, according to regulatory filings from April.