Yum Brands said Monday that CEO David Gibbs will forgo the rest of his base salary in 2020 to fund one-time $1,000 bonuses to the company's nearly 1,200 restaurant general managers across KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill.
His salary will also help fund the Yum Brands Foundation Global Employee Medical Relief Fund, according to a regulatory filing. The fund will provide financial hardship grants to those directly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, including company and franchise restaurant employees. Yum plans to also accept donations to the fund.
Gibbs stood to make $900,000 from his salary this year, excluding any performance-based bonuses.
Chief executives across the restaurant industry have been forgoing their salaries or accepting slashed pay as the pandemic hits sales and leads to layoffs. Among them: Darden Restaurants CEO Gene Lee, who is not taking a salary and The Cheesecake Factory CEO David Overton, who is taking a 20% pay cut.
Correction: An earlier version misidentified Yum Brand's CEO. The CEO is David Gibbs.