The ceo says the drugmaker plans to give shareholders a say over the size of managers’ salaries as of its 2008 annual meeting, the Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung reports. But there’s a catch - any shareholder decision will be purely consultative, not binding.

Franz - who earns less than half of what his counterpart at Novartis, Dan Vasella, pulls down - went on to say that he opposes ”golden parachute’, citing Roche’s above-average salaries. Managers at Swiss rival Novartis are eligible for a compensation of up to five times their annual salary if the company is taken over by a rival, the paper points out.

Sounds like Humer is trying to make Vasella look bad, given the timing of his remarks. Shareholder groups are expected to make a stink at the Novartis annual meeting on Tuesday about exit pay and combining the roles of chairman and ceo.

[tags]Daniel Vasella, Executive Pay, Franz Humer, Novartis, Roche, Shareholder Rights[/tags]