You can save some jobs and cut expenses.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. is cutting salaries for its U.S. employees by up to 30% in a bid to slash ex- penses, according to an inter- nal email reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
The Houston company is facing plunging oil prices, high debt from an ill-timed acquisition and falling de- mand due to a halt in eco- nomic activity because of the new coronavirus.
Chief Executive Vicki Hol- lub’s salary will be cut by 81% and the oil-and-chemical com- pany’s top executives’ pay will
be cut by an average of 68%, according to the email.
Employee bonuses and perks, such as gym member- ships and commuter subsi- dies, are set to end in April.
The company said it was taking the drastic steps in the face of an extraordinarily swift change in oil prices.
“The coronavirus pandemic has led to an unprecedented decline in demand for oil on a global basis,” the email said. “On top of that, the price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia has further exacer- bated the situation. We must take immediate and unprece- dented actions for our com- pany.”
Occidental released a state- ment confirming it was taking steps to “ensure the health of the company while protecting jobs.”