Shareholders are still voting overwhelmingly in favor of big pay packages for CEOs, but there are more pockets of resistance eight years after "Say on Pay" became a mandatory exercise at annual meetings. Median pay for CEOs at the biggest U.S. companies climbed 7% to $12 million last year, according to data analyzed by Equilar for The Associated Press. The median increase for a typical worker at these companies was 3%. Median means half were larger, and half were smaller...

Shares of General Motors are rising as a proxy fight escalates between the company and an activist shareholder who wants to split its shares into two classes. David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital said Tuesday that it's sending a letter to shareholders emphasizing that the stock price has barely grown since GM's initial public offering at $33 seven years ago. GM pointed out last week that two independent, corporate evaluation firms, ISS and Glass Lewis, recommended against the proposal...

Volkswagen board member expects further resignations at German automaker..

The CEO of a credit-card payments company in Seattle said executive pay is "out of whack," so he's cutting his own pay and creating a minimum salary for his workers...

With three kids at home, Mia Hamm already had plenty on her plate when two professional clubs called over the space of just a few days in October. They weren't asking her to play — the 42-year-old soccer star has been retired for more than a decade — rather they wanted her to join their management teams...

McDonald's has a new CEO on the job starting today, and he has his work cut out for him...

The American Postal Workers Union is calling on Harvard University's president to oppose a business arrangement between Staples Inc. and the U.S. Postal Service, or resign her seat on the office supply company's board...

Auction house Sotheby's says it agreed to expand its board to add directors from activist investor Daniel Loeb's slate.

Sotheby's will add Loeb, CEO of hedge fund Third Point, as well as former investment banker Olivier Reza and restructuring expert Harry J. Wilson to its slate of directors up for election at its annual shareholder meeting later this month.

Third Point is Sotheby's largest shareholder with a 9.6 percent stake.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. has tapped the world of metals to find its next CEO. The New York-based media and merchandising company said it has named board member Daniel W. Dienst, who most recently served as CEO of Sims Metal Management, to take over the post. The role had been vacant since Lisa Gersh stepped down in December after less than a year on the job.

The Alitalia board on Friday approved a 300 million euro ($400 million) capital increase as part of a rescue plan for the struggling flagship airline.  The capital increase includes up to 75 million euros from the Italian Postal Services, and the rest from the consortium that runs Alitalia and a bridge loan from banks...

Russia's state-owned Rosneft to buy out minority shareholders in oil firm TNK-BP...

J.C. Penney Co. and its largest shareholder, William Ackman, have made a deal that sets terms for allowing him to unload his stake in the company in an orderly manner...