AIG exec's bailing despite bonuses...

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/t...ectors/banking_and_finance/article5926545.ece
Eleven AIG executives quit despite bonuses up to $4.6 million

<!-- END: Module - Main Heading --><!--CMA user Call Diffrenet Variation Of Image --><!-- BEGIN: M24 Article Headline with landscape image (d) --><script type="text/javascript" src="http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/js/m24-image-browser.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/js/tol.js"></script><!-- BEGIN: Module - M24 Article Headline with landscape image (d) --><script type="text/javascript"> <!-- /* Global variables that are used for "image browsing". Used on article pages to rotate the images of a story. */ var sImageBrowserImagePath = ''; var aArticleImages = new Array(); var aImageDescriptions = new Array(); var aImageEnlargeLink = new Array(); var aImageEnlargePopupWidth = '500'; var aImageEnlargePopupHeight = '500'; var aImagePhotographer = new Array(); var nSelectedArticleImage = 0; var aImageAltText= new Array(); var i=0; //--></script><script type="text/javascript"><!-- aArticleImages = '/multimedia/archive/00505/AndrewCuomo_385x185_505165a.jpg'; //--></script><script type="text/javascript"><!-- aImageDescriptions = "Andrew Cuomo, New York Attorney General, has lead criticism of AIG over the bonus system" ; aImageDescriptions = aImageDescriptions.replace(/&quot;/g,"\""); //--></script><script type="text/javascript"><!-- aImagePhotographer = "Chip East/Reuters" ; aImagePhotographer = aImagePhotographer.replace(/&quot;/g,"\""); //--></script><!--Don't Display undifined test for credit --><script type="text/javascript"><!-- aImageAltText = "New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announces an agreement made with three rating agencies" ; aImageAltText = aImageAltText.replace(/&quot;/g,"\""); //--></script><script type="text/javascript"> <!-- aImageEnlargeLink = '/multimedia/archive/00505/AndrewCuomo_385x185_505165a.jpg'; i=i+1; //--></script>
<!-- Remove following <div> to not show photographer information -->(Chip East/Reuters)



<!-- Remove following <div> to not show image description -->Andrew Cuomo, New York Attorney General, has lead criticism of AIG over the bonus system



<!-- Remove following <div> to not show enlarge option --><!--


--><script type="text/javascript"><!-- fCreateImageBrowser(nSelectedArticleImage,'landscape',"/tol/"); //--></script>
<!-- Print Author name associated with the article --><!-- Print Author name from By Line associated with the article --> Nico Hines

<!-- END: Module - M24 Article Headline with landscape image (d) --><!-- Article Copy module --><!-- BEGIN: Module - Main Article --><!-- Check the Article Type and display accordingly--><!-- Print Author image associated with the Author--><!-- Print the body of the article--><style type="text/css"> div#related-article-links p a, div#related-article-links p a:visited { color:#06c; } </style><!-- Pagination --> <!--Display article with page breaks --> The stricken insurance giant AIG was hit by fresh controversy today when it was revealed that eleven executives being paid bonuses of a million dollars or more to stay have quit the company.
Andrew Cuomo, the New York State Attorney General, revealed this afternoon that the expensive retention payments were not enough to keep the staff on the payroll.
The news undermined the argument of government-appointed AIG boss Edward Liddy that the bonuses were necessary to retain “the best and brightest talent".
Mr Cuomo demanded to be told who had received $165 million worth of bonuses yesterday, but AIG refused to disclose the information despite accepting a multi-billion dollar bailout package from the government.
<!--#include file="m63-article-related-attachements.html"--><!-- BEGIN: Module - M63 - Article Related Attachements --><script type="text/javascript"> <!-- function pictureGalleryPopup(pubUrl,articleId) { var newWin = window.open(pubUrl+'template/2.0-0/element/pictureGalleryPopup.jsp?id='+articleId+'&&offset=0&&sectionName=IndustrySectorsBankingFinance','mywindow','menubar=0,resizable=0,width=1000,height=711'); } //--></script><!-- BEGIN: Comment Teaser Module --><!-- END: Comment Teaser Module --><!-- BEGIN: Module - M63 - Article Related Package --><!-- END: Module - M63 - Article Related Package -->Related Links


<form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form>

• AIG blocks Obama over 'outrageous' bonuses

<form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form>

• Senator suggests AIG chiefs commit suicide

<form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form>

• Bailed-out banks brought to account by TMZ

<form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form><form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form><form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form><form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form><form name="relatedLinksform" action="" method="post"></form>

<!-- BEGIN: POLL --><!--This block will execute if an article of type Poll is attached--><!-- END : POLL --><!-- BEGIN: DEBATE--><!-- END: DEBATE-->
<!-- END: Module - M63 - Article Related Attachements --><!-- Call Wide Article Attachment Module --><!--TEMPLATE:call file="wideArticleAttachment.jsp" /--> In a letter to Barney Frank, chairman of the finance committee in the US House of Representatives, he wrote: “Eleven of the individuals who received ’retention’ bonuses of one million dollars or more are no longer working at AIG, including one who received 4.6 million dollars.”
Mr Cuomo vowed to subpoena the insurer to force it to divulge the names, job descriptions and performance of the workers involved. He plans to investigate whether the bonus payments breached state law. The payments may be illegal if they were promised at a time when AIG knew that it did not have the cash to meet its commitments.
In the letter to Congress, Mr Cuomo also revealed that the ten AIG employees who received the largest bonuses were paid a total of $42 million dollars.
“These payments were all made to individuals . . . whose performance led to crushing losses and the near failure of AIG,” he wrote.
A total of 73 employees received a million dollars or more, Mr Cuomo said. “Thus, last week, AIG made more than 73 millionaires in the unit which lost so much money that it brought the firm to its knees, forcing a taxpayer bailout. Something is deeply wrong with this outcome,” he said.

<!-- End of pagination --><!-- Show rating of this article --><!-- Contextual links Module --><!-- End Contextual links Module --><!-- Functionality for Comment :START--><!-- Functionality for Comment --><script type="text/javascript" src="http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/js/m20-enter-view-comment.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> <!-- var show=false; var articleID = "5926545"; var sHaveYourSay = 'Have your say'; var sCollapseForm = 'Hide the form'; var sHideMostComments = 'Show fewer comments'; var errorString = ''; var testFlag = true; var request = false; //var nTotalCharacters = 300; // Value for the total number of characters that can be submitted - change to suit requirements // // Array of required fields for the named form var aFormEnterViewCommentValidation = new Array('your_view','name','email','town_fs_city'); /* get the cookie string in cookie associated with cookiename */ function getCookie(Name) { var search = Name + "=" var CookieString = document.cookie var result = null if (CookieString.length> 0) { offset = CookieString.indexOf(search) if (offset != -1) { offset += search.length end = CookieString.indexOf(";", offset) if (end == -1) end = CookieString.length result = unescape(CookieString.substring(offset, end)) } } return result } /* set the cookie string in cookie */ function setCookie (name, value, lifespan) { var cookietext = name + "=" + escape(value) if (lifespan != null) { var today=new Date() var expiredate = new Date() expiredate.setTime(today.getTime() + 1000*60*60*24*lifespan) cookietext += "; expires=" + expiredate.toGMTString() } document.cookie = cookietext return null } function fDisplayCaptchaError(){ document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").innerHTML = "Error: Incorrect captcha
"; } /* validating whether required fields are being entered before submitted */ function PostingValidate(objForm) { // if remember me is checked, the information is saved into the cookies if(objForm.remember_me.checked == true){ setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_body',objForm.body.value,30); setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_name',objForm.name.value,30); setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_email',objForm.email.value,30); setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_city',objForm.city.value,30); setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_countryState',objForm.countryState.value,30); setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_remember_me',objForm.remember_me.checked,30); } else{ setCookie('TimesOnlinecomment_remember_me',objForm.remember_me.checked,30); } // seting the title to article headline so that the moderator get to know on which article, comment is made objForm.title.value = "Eleven AIG executives quit despite bonuses up to $4.6 million"; errorString = ''; testFlag = true; if(objForm.body.value.length=="0"){ objForm.body.focus(); document.getElementById("label_your_view").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("label_your_view").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; testFlag = false; errorString = '
* You haven\'t entered a comment'; } else { document.getElementById("label_your_view").className = ''; document.getElementById("label_your_view").style.fontWeight = 'normal'; } if(objForm.name.value.length=="0"){ objForm.email.focus(); testFlag = false; document.getElementById("label_name").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("label_name").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; errorString += '
* Please enter your name'; } else { document.getElementById("label_name").className = ''; document.getElementById("label_name").style.fontWeight = 'normal'; } if(objForm.email.value.length=="0"){ objForm.body.focus(); testFlag = false; document.getElementById("label_email").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("label_email").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; errorString += '
* Please enter your e-mail'; } else { if(objForm.email.value.indexOf("@",1)==-1){ document.getElementById("label_email").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("label_email").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; testFlag = false; errorString += '
* Please enter a valid e-mail'; } else{ document.getElementById("label_email").className = ''; document.getElementById("label_email").style.fontWeight = 'normal'; } } if(objForm.city.value.length=="0"){ objForm.body.focus(); testFlag = false; document.getElementById("label_town_fs_city").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("label_town_fs_city").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; errorString += '
* Please enter your city'; } else { document.getElementById("label_town_fs_city").className = ''; document.getElementById("label_town_fs_city").style.fontWeight = 'normal'; } /* //Commented out Captcha functionality if(objForm.captcha.value.length=="0"){ objForm.body.focus(); testFlag = false; errorString += '
* Please type the letters in the \'Are you human?\' section'; } */ if (testFlag == false) { document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").className = 'color-bd0000'; document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").style.fontWeight = 'bold'; document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").innerHTML = "Error: "+errorString+"
"; return false; } else { return true; document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").className = ''; document.getElementById("enter-view-comment-error-container").style.fontWeight = 'normal'; } } var sReadAllComments = ""; //--></script><!-- BEGIN: M20 - Enter View Comment --><script type="text/javascript"><!-- var bHaveComments=true ; //--></script>

• Have your say

<script type="text/javascript"><!-- fGenerateHaveYourSayLink('have-your-say-link-1', 'comments-form', sHaveYourSay); //--></script><noscript>

• Have your say

</noscript>
We have bankruptcy laws that would have applied (employees with bonusses would have lined up with other creditors - and probably got nothing. Seems we need some bailout laws to be written. A nice touch would be the board of directors would be personally financially repsonsible for any bonusses.
Dave, Victoria,

• • H