(New York, NY) – Today, Netflix announced that after four years of persistent engagement from shareowners including Comptroller Stringer and the New York City Retirement Systems (NYCRS), the company has adopted proxy access — an important accountability provision that will allow substantial, long-term shareowners to more easily nominate candidates to the board of directors.
“This is a welcome and positive step by the Netflix board of directors that marks a major turning point for the company,” said Comptroller Stringer.“By enacting proxy access, Netflix is finally giving investors a meaningful voice in board elections and they are no longer an outlier holding out on their long-term shareowners. That’s good for accountability and independence at Netflix — and for our pension beneficiaries. Now the board of directors has to demonstrate its commitment to addressing shareholder concerns and they should consider a number of other proposals that have received wide support but which the company has repeatedly ignored.”
As part of Comptroller Stringer’s “Boardroom Accountability Project,” NYCRS has urged the company to adopt proxy access by initiating a shareholder proposal campaign in 2015. In each year since, Netflix shareowners have resoundingly voted for the proxy access proposal, but the company flatly ignored shareowner voices and refused to adopt the proposal. However Netflix today announced that has agreed to adopt the proxy access measure, joining the vast majority of its S&P 500 peers.
The “Boardroom Accountability Project,” put proxy access on the map, helping to grow the number of companies with meaningful proxy access from just 6 in 2014 to over 540 now — including over 65 percent of S&P 500 companies.
Comptroller Stringer serves as the investment advisor to, and custodian and a trustee of, the New York City Pension Funds. The New York City Pension Funds are composed of the New York City Employees’ Retirement System, Teachers’ Retirement System, New York City Police Pension Fund, New York City Fire Department Pension Fund and the Board of Education Retirement System.
In addition to Comptroller Stringer, the New York City Pension Funds’ trustees are:
New York City Employees’ Retirement System: Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Representative, John Adler (Chair); New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams; Borough Presidents: Gale Brewer (Manhattan), Melinda Katz (Queens), Eric Adams (Brooklyn), James Oddo (Staten Island), and Ruben Diaz, Jr. (Bronx); Henry Garrido, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME; Tony Utano, President Transport Workers Union Local 100; Gregory Floyd, President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 237.
Teachers’ Retirement System: Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Appointee, John Adler; Chancellor’s Representative, Lindsey Oates, New York City Department of Education; and Debra Penny, Thomas Brown and David Kazansky, all of the United Federation of Teachers.
New York City Police Pension Fund: Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Representative, John Adler; New York City Finance Commissioner Jacques Jiha; New York City Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill (Chair); Roy T. Richter, Captains Endowment Association; Louis Turco, Lieutenants Benevolent Association; Edward D. Mullins, Sergeants Benevolent Association; Michael Palladino, Detectives Endowment Association; and, Patrick Lynch, John Puglissi, Joseph Alejandro, and Patrick Hendry all of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association.
New York City Fire Department Pension Fund: Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Representative, John Adler; New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro (Chair); New York City Finance Commissioner Jacques Jiha; Gerard Fitzgerald, President, LeRoy McGinnis, Vice President, Edward Brown, Treasurer, and John Kelly, Brooklyn Representative and Chair, Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York; John Farina, Captains’ Rep.; Paul Mannix, Chiefs’ Rep., and Jack Kielty, Lieutenants’ Rep., Uniformed Fire Officers Association; and, Peter Devita, Marine Engineers Association.
Board of Education Retirement System: Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza; Mayoral: Isaac Carmignani, Natalie Green Giles, Vanessa Leung, Gary Linnen, Lori Podvesker, Shannon Waite, Miguelina Zorilla-Aristy; Michael Kraft (Manhattan BP), Deborah Dillingham (Queens BP), April Chapman (Brooklyn BP), Geneal Chacon (Bronx BP) and Peter Calandrella (Staten Island BP); and employee members John Maderich of the IUOE Local 891 and Donald Nesbit of District Council 37, Local 372.