Apple must allow shareholders to vote on whether the firm should hire outside experts to reform its executive compensation, the Securities Exchange Commission has ruled.

Investor Jing Zhao, a critic of inflated executive pay, in June presented a proposal he wants Apple to include in proxy materials for its 2017 annual shareholders meeting. Zhao wants shareholders to make the company bring in “multiple outside independent experts or resources from the general public to reform its executive compensation principles and practices.”

Apple’s “failure” on executive compensation is showcased by the equal compensation given to five top Apple executives, who each received $25 million in 2015, Zhao said in a statement submitted with his proposal. Read More