Steve Jobs salary is $1. The cost of a six-month replacement for him? $5 million.
That's what Apple Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook was granted Wednesday as a reward for taking over while Jobs was on medical leave from January to June 2009, according to an SEC filing made by the company Friday.
The Apple board's compensation committee "unanimously approved a recommendation by Steve Jobs" to award Cook a one-time $5 million bonus as well as 75,000 restricted stock units as a thank you for "his outstanding performance," the filing reads.
Cook's generous bonus clearly demonstrates his value both to Apple and to his boss. Jobs has taken time to praise Cook for the work he didwhile Jobs was tending to his health last year, thanking him at public product unveilings as well as at the most recent Apple shareholder meeting.
While Jobs was out, Apple delivered two back-to-back blow-out quarters, as well as an updated iPhone OS, and new iPhone 3GS hardware. Under Cook, Apple also put the finishing touches on the company's new iPods, MacBooks, and Mac OS, which were released shortly after Jobs' return to the helm in late June.