A Fletcher spokesman said: "The $3.9m is correct, however, the $2m worth of shares will not transfer to Ross unless a total shareholder return performance hurdle is met three years after they were granted."
Details are in Fletcher's 2020 report, issued this month.
His total pay package and shares, therefore, dropped from last year's $5.2m to this year's $3.9m, down $1.3m or a quarter.
Fletcher's remuneration report lists why. An orange dot appears alongside factors he is measured by, explained as meaning "no achievement against target".
So it was Taylor's aim to meet a financial target of increasing operating earnings or EBIT.
"The EBIT loss of $(116) million did not meet the threshold target level set as it was impacted by both the Covid-19 market impacts, which included an almost complete shutdown of the NZ businesses, and increase in the provision envelope to complete the remaining legacy construction projects," the annual report said.
An orange dot also signalled a lack of achievement of an individual goal to turn around the Australian business. That did not meet its budget targets due to the market slowdowns from the Covid-19 impacts. While the business was reset through the year to ensure it was set up on a go-forward basis to deal with this – goal was not achieved, the report said.
Another loathsome orange dot marked Taylor's objectives for the New Zealand business which did not achieve the targeted profit levels as a result of the shutdown and market contraction resulting from the impacts of Covid-19. While the business was reset through the year to ensure it was set up on a go-forward basis to deal with this – this goal was not achieved
But Taylor did score the ultimate green dot with a circle around it, marking an aim above target achievement: cash flow performance for the FY20 year was materially above budget, "achieved from strong cash disciplines across the business which were well maintained through the Covid-19 shutdown, and enhanced by decisions to restrict both capital expenditure and residential land purchases through the year.
Taylor flew to Sydney on March 20, just before lockdown, saying he and his wife had grown children and had no idea they would not be able to return to New Zealand freely. On his return, he did a two-week stay in Rotorua's three-star Ibis.
"It all moved so fast. The world changed. I'd love to say I saw it all coming but I had no idea what we were about to go into."
The keen surfer's home is in Sydney's northern beach suburbs, up the peninsula from Manly, at Balgowlah Heights.
During late March, all of April and May, and 20 days in June, he remained in Sydney where he was based before late 2017 when he officially took over running the company from ex-chief executive Mark Adamson.
It was not until June 20 that Taylor flew back to New Zealand, arriving in Auckland and being sent by authorities directly under security to the Rotorua hotel to sit out the two weeks.
He marked off his days with a red X on the wall of a hotel room.
"I've got a ceremony every morning where I do my workout, have a cup of tea and I've got my little chart on the wall and I cross off each day. It was pretty grim at the start," he said.
He faces a further fortnight in quarantine when he returns to Sydney in September, then if the regime is still in place, a further fortnight when he returns here after Christmas.
