Share-based payments
The Group operates the 1997 Employee Share Option Scheme (“the Scheme”) in order to facilitate broad-based employee share ownership and to foster trust and loyalty amongst employees. The Scheme incentivises key management and staff by providing them with an opportunity to acquire shares in the Group thereby aligning their interests with shareholders and at the same time encouraging employee retention.
The Scheme is administered by the Employee Share Purchase Trust and its Board of Trustees. All options are granted in accordance with the rules of the Scheme, which have been approved by the shareholders and the JSE Limited.
All options are granted at a 5% discount to the volume-weighted average market price (VWAP) for the 20 trading days preceding the option grant date.
Following the AGM on 11 June 2008, the Share Trust implemented the “net-settling” of share options. All share options granted after 11 June 2008 will, at the time of exercise by the employee, be automatically net-settled by the Company. This means that at the time of the exercise of an option, the employee will only receive so many shares (at current value) as represents the gain in the value of the option. For all options granted prior to 11 June 2008, the employee can choose whether to net-settle the options, or whether to pay the purchase price in full to take up the total allotment of shares.
All vested share options have to be exercised, paid for (or net-settled) and taken up within 10 years of the grant date. The directors are authorised to utilise up to 13.3% of the issued share capital for the Scheme.
The Scheme grants the following options to employees:
Service Share Options – are granted to all permanent employees who have been with the Group for five years and further options are granted every five years thereafter.
Service share options may be taken up immediately on granting.
Status Share Options – are granted to employees who attain floor manager status and further options are granted at each promotion to higher levels of management.
Status share options may be taken up in three tranches as follows:
40% after 3 years
30% after 5 years
30% after 7 years
Further share allocations are also made for the retention of key executives, with longer vesting dates of up to 10 years.
Executive Share Options – are granted to senior executives. These three to five-year options may only be taken up when prescribed performance conditions linked to the growth of the Company’s share price are met. If the conditions are not met, these options are automatically forfeited. Should further performance hurdles be achieved, discounted grant prices may apply. |