September 5, 2019
On September 5, 2019, the Wall Street Journal reported that the court administering the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of California utility PG&E had denied the company’s proposed multi-million dollar bonus plan for its top executives. The article, seeking comment by experts not involved in the case, quoted CWS partner Peter DeChiara saying that it was “gratifying to see that the PG&E judge scrutinized the bonus plan and turned it down.” “Sometimes judges will do that,” his quote continued, “but more often than not those plans are approved. It’s a shame because typically, by the very nature of the bankruptcy, the stakeholders including the rank and file workers are sacrificing, taking a hit. While other stakeholders are suffering, management is getting bonuses.”
Peter DeChiara represents unions and benefit funds in employer bankruptcy cases and edits the firm’s blog on bankruptcy labor issues: https://www.cwsny.com/bankruptcy-blog/.