WHEELING - Bonuses totaling about $20 million are expected to be paid out to a pool of at least 10 top RG Steel executives if the now-bankrupt steelmaker's assets are successfully sold at auction in the immediate future.
Details of the bonuses are sealed. However, names of those who stand to benefit from this motion are included in the court filings. Several industry sources have described the agreement as extremely complex.
Those noted in the court document who may be eligible to receive these bonuses include President and Chief Executive Officer John Goodwin; Chief Financial Officer Rich Caruso; Chief Administrative Officer Dave Pryzbylski; Chief Operating Officer Mark Whalen; Tom Cera, general manager for Wheeling and Warren, Ohio; Comptroller Jeff Gennuso; General Counsel Howie Japlan; Vice President of Quality Assurance George Lukes; Sparrows Point, Md., General Manager Glen Mikaloff; and Chief Commercial Officer Jerry Nelson.
The United States Trustee assigned to the case objected to the bonus pool being established and also objected to the seal on the potential compensation levels of those executives.
Federal Bankruptcy Court Judge Kevin J. Carey made his ruling on the contested motion establishing the bonus pool of funds during a Wednesday hearing in Wilmington, Del. Court documents filed recently note many of the executives who now stand to benefit from a successful sale left home and family to take up management of the company about 18 months ago, and as they do not expect to be employed with the steel firm much longer the prospect of the bonus money will help compensate for those business related stressors and keep them "laser focused" on the necessary details of the bankruptcy process and need for the sale of assets.
The bonuses are not guaranteed, and will be heavily influenced by money available after several layers of lenders are paid. Lenders include Wells Fargo, General Electric, UBS Securities, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Cerebus Business Finance, and the Renco Group, which is owned by New York-based billionaire Ira L. Rennert and his family.
