Ex-Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn will receive a $32 million pension after resigning his post this week.
Winterkorn had stepped down on Wednesday amidst one of the largest scandals to rock the automotive world in recent memory, in which 11 million diesel-powered Volkswagen and Audi models were revealed to have been intentionally cheating emissions tests since at least 2009.
According to Bloomberg, the company's annual report shows that Winterkorn had amassed a pension worth $32 million for his career at the disgraced automaker, which began when he was hired as head of Group Quality Assurance in 1993 and saw him promoted to CEO in 2007.
Winterkorn could also earn a second payout of several million more, described as "two years of renumeration", depending on how the company's supervisory board rules regarding his departure. This severance is made possible if the supervisory board ends Winterkorn's contract before it's up. However, if it is determined that the contract is terminated for reasons he is responsible for, then Winterkorn loses that severance.
However, the supervisory board has alreadyreleased a statement recognizing that Winterkorn "had no knowledge of the manipulation of emissions data" and that is "has great respect for Chairman Professor Dr. Winterkorn's offer to resign his position and to ask that his employment agreement be terminated."
The Bloomberg report also notes that Winterkorn was Germany's second-highest paid CEO last year.
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