DENVER, March 12 (UPI) -- The co-CEOs of restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill had their pay decreased after 2015 norovirus and E.coli outbreaks that sickened dozens.
Steve Ellis and Monty Moran saw their 2015 compensation decreased by about half of what they were paid the year before.
Ellis received $13.8 million in 2015, including incentives, a 52 percent drop from the $28.9 million he made in 2014.
Moran received a similar pay cut, earning $13.6 million in 2015 after making $28.1 million in 2014.
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Both men saw their base salary increase by $100,000 in 2015, but a lack of stock options was the main contributor to the drop in pay. Ellis and Moran were both awarded $27.3 million in options in 2014, but none in 2015.
Instead of the options each was compensated with $12 million in stock awards in 2015.
The company stated that future compensation would be tied to stock performance after stock prices suffered from the E. coli outbreaks and other health issues at the end of 2015.
Stock prices had reached an all-time high of $758 per share before the outbreaks caused them to fall significantly, reaching $507 on Friday.
Chipotle experienced its worst quarterly profit since 2012 in the last three months of 2015. The company earned $68 million during that time period, dropping 44 percent from 2014.
The company also reported a decline in quarterly revenue for the first time in February, when overall revenue declined 6.8 percent.
Health issues continued for Chipotle on March 9, when a Boston location closed after an employee was diagnosed with norovirus.
