Investors are increasingly unhappy about the pay packages of their portfolio companies, according to new data.
The proportion of shareholders that opposed European firms’ remuneration policies during the 2025 proxy season jumped to nearly 38%, from 30.7% in 2024.
Georgeson, the US-based advisor that released the figures, said the spike “creates challenges for future executive pay structures” in the region.
The findings were based on voting results from annual general meetings held in the UK, Ireland, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Switzerland and Belgium.
The proportion of contested remuneration reports also increased slightly between 2024 and 2025, from 29.9% to 31.1%.
While remuneration policies outline a company’s overarching principles for paying its executives, remuneration reports explain what they were actually paid each year.
Georgeson categorises resolutions as ‘contested’ if 10% or more of shareholder votes are cast against them.
Listed firms in Switzerland had the highest level of contested remuneration reports, at 52.6%, while Spain saw the biggest proportion of contested remuneration policies at 56.3%. Irish companies had the lowest share for both, followed closely by those in the UK.
“Investors appear increasingly willing to challenge executive pay through a more confrontational and disruptive approach, by opposing companies’ binding remuneration policy resolution frameworks,” said Cas Sydorowitz, Georgeson’s chief executive officer.
“By voting ‘against’ such resolutions, investors directly challenge future executive compensation structures, which can also include long-term incentive plans.”
Data published last month by the High Pay Centre shows that the median pay of FTSE 100 CEOs smashed previous records for the third year in a row.
In 2024/25, it was £4.6m, up nearly 7% on 2023/24, with 13 companies now paying their CEOs more than £10m. That means the median CEO at a FTSE 100 firm is paid 122 times more than the median full-time worker in the UK.
“By voting ‘against’ such resolutions, investors directly challenge future executive compensation structures, which can also include long-term incentive plans.”
Cas Sydorowitz, Georgeson’s CEO
“These disparities matter not just for optics, but because they shape trust in institutions, influence workforce morale and engagement, and affect public perceptions of business legitimacy,” said the High Pay Centre.
“In an era where millions of workers face financial pressures and public services are stretched, the optics of multi-million-pound executive rewards are especially stark.”
Pushback against share issuance also saw a significant increase this proxy season, according to Georgeson’s figures. The proportion of contested resolutions on the topic rose from 13.4% last year to 18.9%, with the UK the only market to see a decline in shareholder opposition.
Sydorowitz suggested the overall rise may signal that investors want to see stronger oversight of capital decisions.
“Shareholders may also be increasingly concerned about shareholder,” he added.
There was a slight drop in the proportion of contested director elections at European companies between 2024 and 2025, from 12.8% to 12.2%, which Georgeson attributed to companies having a clearer understanding of investors’ criteria when evaluating non-executive director appointments.
The levels were highly dependent on jurisdiction, though: just 2.1% of director elections in the UK were contested, for example, compared with 29.5% in Belgium.
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