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Companies Casella Waste Systems Inc

Casella Waste Systems (CWST): executive pay, fiscal 2025

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CEO total pay$2,830,523CEO Edmond Coletta · source
Say-on-pay support97.3%Latest vote · source
CEO vs. named peers1st pct.Of 4 peer CEOs
CEO pay ratio55.74:1To the median employee · source

CEO pay, last three years

  • $1,602,174FY2023
  • $2,210,761FY2024
  • $2,830,523FY2025

CEO total pay was $2,830,523 in fiscal 2025, up from $2,210,761 in fiscal 2024.

FY2025: salary $615,134 · bonus $0 · stock awards $1,644,377 · option awards $0

Executives and directors

Frequently asked questions

Who was the highest-paid executive at Casella Waste Systems Inc in fiscal 2025?
As disclosed, John Casella (Executive Chairman of the Board and Secretary and Former Chief Executive Officer) was the highest-paid executive at Casella Waste Systems Inc in fiscal 2025, with total compensation of $4,405,946.
How does Casella Waste Systems Inc's chief executive pay compare to its disclosed peer group?
As disclosed, Edmond Coletta's total compensation ranked at the 1st percentile of Casella Waste Systems Inc's disclosed peer group.
What is Casella Waste Systems Inc's CEO-to-median employee pay ratio?
As disclosed, Casella Waste Systems Inc's CEO-to-median employee pay ratio was 55.74:1.
How did shareholders vote on Casella Waste Systems Inc's executive compensation?
As disclosed, 97.3% of shareholders supported Casella Waste Systems Inc's executive compensation in the latest say-on-pay vote.
How much does Casella Waste Systems Inc spend in total on board compensation for fiscal 2025?
As disclosed, Casella Waste Systems Inc reported total board compensation of $1,717,001 for fiscal 2025.

Answers are drawn only from the figures disclosed in this brief and cited to their location in the source filing. Where a figure required for an answer is not disclosed, that is stated rather than estimated.

Full detail

Every table from the filing. Open any section.

Summary compensation table
Named executive officerSalaryBonusStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentivePension / NQDCAll otherTotal
John Casella$790,463$0$2,740,659$0$853,697$0$21,127$4,405,946
Executive Chairman of the Board and Secretary and Former Chief Executive Officer
Edmond Coletta615,13401,644,3770553,619017,3932,830,523
President and Chief Executive Officer
Bradford Helgeson500,0000876,9360305,999067,2931,750,228
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Shelley Sayward390,7640493,3340239,147015,5771,138,822
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Sean Steves347,6050438,4680212,73409,4541,008,261
Former Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Solid Waste Operations

A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.

Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive

Named executive officerFY2025 totalFY2024 totalFY2023 totalΔ FY2024→2025
John Casella$4,405,946$4,166,661$3,461,597↑ +239,285
Edmond Coletta2,830,5232,210,7611,602,174↑ +619,762
Bradford Helgeson1,750,2281,661,080780,355↑ +89,148
Shelley Sayward1,138,8221,225,718895,077↓ −86,896
Sean Steves1,008,261994,919778,248↑ +13,342

Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.

Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis

Attract, retain and incentivize qualified and talented executives by providing compensation opportunities comparable to those offered by other companies with which we compete for business and talent; Reward achievement of our short-term and long-term business objectives, while discouraging excessive risk-taking behavior; Ensure that executive compensation is aligned with our corporate strategies, business objectives and the long-term interests of our stockholders; and Closely align the long-term interests of our executives with those of our stockholders by providing equity incentives that link a portion of the executives compensation with the future performance of our Class A common stock.

CEO STI target (% of salary)150%
CEO LTI target (% of salary)—
Independent consultantPay Governance
Clawback policyTrue
Anti-hedgingTrue
Anti-pledgingtrue
Equity grants and outstanding awards

Grants of plan-based awards — fiscal year 2025

ExecutiveAwardGrant dateThresholdTargetGrantedMaximumGrant-date fair value
John W. CasellaPSU2025-03-12—17,833—42,799$2,115,707
Edmond ColettaPSU2025-03-12—10,700—25,6801,269,448
Sean StevesRSU2025-03-12——951—99,988
Sean StevesPSU2025-03-12—2,853—6,847338,480
Edmond ColettaRSU2025-03-12——3,566—374,929
Bradford HelgesonPSU2025-03-12—5,706—13,694676,960
Shelley SaywardPSU2025-03-12—3,210—7,704380,834
Bradford HelgesonRSU2025-03-12——1,902—199,976
Shelley SaywardRSU2025-03-12——1,070—112,500
John W. CasellaRSU2025-03-12——5,944—624,952

Vehicle mix — grant-date fair value by award type

Named executive officerTime-vested (RSU)Performance-vested (PSU)Options / SARs% performance-vested
John W. Casella$624,952$2,115,707$077.2%
Edmond Coletta374,9291,269,448077.2%
Sean Steves99,988338,480077.2%
Bradford Helgeson199,976676,960077.2%
Shelley Sayward112,500380,834077.2%

% performance-vested = PSU grant-date fair value ÷ (RSU + PSU + Options), a computed value with the derivation shown in the register.

Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025

ExecutiveAwardShares unvestedExercise priceMarket value unvested
Sean StevesRSU309—$30,263
Shelley SaywardRSU414—40,547
Sean StevesRSU586—57,393
Bradford HelgesonRSU627—61,408
Shelley SaywardRSU799—78,254
Edmond ColettaRSU884—86,579
Sean StevesRSU951—93,141
Shelley SaywardRSU1,070—104,796
Bradford HelgesonRSU1,243—121,739
Edmond ColettaRSU1,775—173,844
Bradford HelgesonRSU1,902—186,282
CasellaRSU2,099—205,576
Sean StevesPSU2,637—258,268
Sean StevesPSU2,853—279,423
Shelley SaywardPSU3,210—314,387
CasellaRSU3,373—330,352
Edmond ColettaRSU3,566—349,254
Shelley SaywardPSU3,595—352,094
Bradford HelgesonPSU5,593—547,778
Bradford HelgesonPSU5,706—558,846
CasellaRSU5,944—582,155
Edmond ColettaPSU7,990—782,541
Bradford HelgesonOption10,50079.72—
Edmond ColettaPSU10,700—1,047,958
CasellaPSU15,181—1,486,827
CasellaPSU17,833—1,746,564
Edmond ColettaOption30,00082.47—
Director compensation
DirectorCash feesStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveAll otherTotal
Joseph G. DoodyIndependent · Lead Independent Director · Compensation and Human Capital · Nominating and ESG$112,500$189,915$0$0$0$302,415
Michael K. BurkeIndependent · Audit (Chair) · Nominating and ESG102,500139,931000242,431
William P. HulliganIndependent · Audit · Compensation and Human Capital (Chair)100,000139,931000239,931
Emily Nagle GreenIndependent · Compensation and Human Capital · Nominating and ESG (Chair)97,500139,931000237,431
Michael L. BattlesIndependent · Audit · Nominating and ESG92,500139,931000232,431
Gary SovaIndependent · Audit · Compensation and Human Capital92,500139,931000232,431
Rose Stuckey KirkIndependent · Compensation and Human Capital · Nominating and ESG90,000139,931000229,931
John W. CasellaEmployee director · Board Chair000—00
Edmond R. ColettaEmployee director000—00
Douglas R. CasellaEmployee director000—00

Board fee structure and ownership guideline

Annual cash retainer$75,000
Annual equity retainer$140,000
Per board meeting fee—
Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov)20,000 / 15,000 / 15,000
Stock ownership guideline3x annual retainer ($225,000)

Total cost of the board

ComponentFY2025
Cash retainers and fees$687,500
Equity awards (grant-date value)$1,029,501
All other compensation$0
Total cost of the board$1,717,001

Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.

Peer group, and who names Casella Waste Systems as a peer

Companies that benchmark against CWST

8 companies name CWST as a compensation peer

The list of companies that name CWST as a peer is temporarily unavailable — recheck shortly.

Disclosed peer group — fiscal year 2025

The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.

Chief executive pay against the peer group

Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company’s own proxy statement.

RankCompanyFYChief executiveSalaryStock awardsOption awardsNon-equity incentiveTotal
1Waste Management, Inc.2025James Fish$1,486,538$12,406,478$2,400,021$2,472,480$19,048,786
2Republic Services, Inc.2025Jon Vander Ark1,302,69211,124,48901,982,66414,857,016
3Waste Connections Inc.2025Ronald Mittelstaedt1,171,9435,301,06003,097,6009,757,565
4Casella Waste Systems Inc2025Edmond Coletta615,1341,644,3770553,6192,830,523
—GFL Environmental, Inc.——————not in coverage universe

Each peer’s compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer’s figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.

Incentive design against the same peers

CompanyAnnual incentive payoutLong-term vehicle mixPSU measures include TSRCompensation consultant
Casella Waste Systems Incnot disclosedPSU 75 · RSU 25NoPay Governance
GFL Environmental, Inc.not disclosednot disclosednot disclosednot disclosed
Republic Services, Inc.91.79%PSU 80 · RSU 20NoPearl Meyer & Partners, LLC
Waste Connections Inc.160%PSU 50 · RSU 50Yes — Relative TSR ModifierPearl Meyer & Partners, LLC
Waste Management, Inc.103.02%PSU 80 · Option 20NoFrederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.

Read from each company’s Compensation Discussion and Analysis: annual incentive payout as a percentage of target, the disclosed long-term vehicle mix, whether performance-share measures include a total shareholder return component, and the retained compensation consultant. “Not disclosed” appears only where the company’s filing does not state the item.

Say-on-pay history and pay ratio
Meeting yearMeeting dateForAgainstAbstainSupportOutcome
20262026-06-0466,322,4671,840,247303,46997.3%Passed
20252025-06-0565,592,9222,742,17377,93995.99%Passed
20242024-06-1061,734,0821,452,951131,59897.7%Passed
20232023-06-0154,468,8441,911,77415,29096.61%Passed
20222022-06-0253,704,1701,675,04819,78296.98%Passed
20212021-06-0253,334,1972,032,08932,05296.33%Passed

Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year’s compensation.

Say-on-pay — history, company’s computation

Meeting yearMeeting dateApproval — company’s computation
20262026-06-0497.3%a
20252025-06-0595.99%b
20242024-06-1097.7%c

a. Voting standard not stated in the filing.

b. Voting standard not stated in the filing.

c. Voting standard not stated in the filing.

Approval percentages are the company’s own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.

CEO pay ratio

Ratio (CEO : median employee)55.74 : 1
CEO total compensation$4,405,946
Median employee compensation$79,050
Insider trades since the proxy

Every insider equity transaction reported on Form 4 after the 2025 proxy statement — acquisitions, dispositions, exercises, and withholdings — and therefore not reflected in any table in that document.

InsiderRoleTransaction dateCodeSharesPriceValueSecuritySource
Edmond ColettaPresident & CEO2026-05-19D1,593$90$143,370CommonForm 4 ↗
Edmond ColettaPresident & CEO2026-05-19D6,00089534,180CommonForm 4 ↗
Edmond ColettaPresident & CEO2026-05-19D4,90790441,973CommonForm 4 ↗
Michael K. BurkeDirector2026-05-26D2,30588201,826CommonForm 4 ↗
John W. CasellaDirector2026-06-01D30,80000Common, indirectForm 4 ↗
John W. CasellaDirector2026-06-01A36,20000Common, indirectForm 4 ↗
John W. CasellaDirector2026-06-01D36,20000CommonForm 4 ↗
John W. CasellaDirector2026-06-01A30,80000CommonForm 4 ↗
Rose Stuckey KirkDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Joseph G. DoodyDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Gary SovaDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Emily Nagle GreenDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Douglas R. CasellaDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Michael L. BattlesDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
William P. HulliganDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Michael K. BurkeDirector2026-06-04A1,79384149,984RSUForm 4 ↗
Emily Nagle GreenDirector2026-06-08D60000CommonForm 4 ↗
Damian Andrew RibarExecutive VP and COO2026-08-11A25,00000Derivative, Class A CommonForm 4 ↗
Douglas R. CasellaDirector2026-08-13D13,319911,212,961CommonForm 4 ↗
Douglas R. CasellaDirector2026-08-13D1,83891167,056CommonForm 4 ↗
Douglas R. CasellaDirector2026-08-14D1,34391122,374CommonForm 4 ↗
Michael K. BurkeDirector2026-08-26D1,10093102,289CommonForm 4 ↗
Michael K. BurkeDirector2026-09-03D1,10095104,786CommonForm 4 ↗

Transaction codes per Form 4: A acquisition · S open-market sale · F tax withholding · M option exercise · G gift. Value = shares × price as reported. Dividend-equivalent and fractional-share accrual rows (derivative Class A, under $10,000 and under 2,000 shares) are aggregated per date; every row appears in full below.

Sources (59 citations)

Each figure is listed with the filing it comes from, where it appears in that filing, and the value as printed. Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.

  • Section 01, John Casella. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Summary Compensation Table” · page 52. As printed: 4,405,946. View filing ↗
  • Section 01, Edmond Coletta. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Summary Compensation Table”. As printed: 2,830,523. View filing ↗
  • Section 01, Bradford Helgeson. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Summary Compensation Table”. As printed: 1,750,228. View filing ↗
  • Section 01, Shelley Sayward. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Summary Compensation Table”. As printed: 1,138,822. View filing ↗
  • Section 01, Sean Steves. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Summary Compensation Table”. As printed: 1,008,261. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, John W. Casella PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Edmond Coletta PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Sean Steves RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Sean Steves PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Edmond Coletta RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Bradford Helgeson PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Shelley Sayward PSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Bradford Helgeson RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, Shelley Sayward RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 03, John W. Casella RSU. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Grants of Plan-Based Awards” · grants of plan-based awards table. View filing ↗
  • Section 07, pay ratio. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “CEO Pay Ratio”. As printed: 55.74 : 1. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Joseph G. Doody. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 302,415. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Michael K. Burke. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 242,431. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, William P. Hulligan. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 239,931. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Emily Nagle Green. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 237,431. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Michael L. Battles. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 232,431. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Gary Sova. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 232,431. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Rose Stuckey Kirk. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 229,931. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, John W. Casella. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Edmond R. Coletta. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
  • Section 08, Douglas R. Casella. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Edmond Coletta 2026-05-19. Form 4, filed 2026-05-22. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Edmond Coletta 2026-05-19. Form 4, filed 2026-05-22. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Edmond Coletta 2026-05-19. Form 4, filed 2026-05-22. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Michael K. Burke 2026-05-26. Form 4, filed 2026-05-27. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, John W. Casella 2026-06-01. Form 4, filed 2026-06-02. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, John W. Casella 2026-06-01. Form 4, filed 2026-06-02. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, John W. Casella 2026-06-01. Form 4, filed 2026-06-02. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, John W. Casella 2026-06-01. Form 4, filed 2026-06-02. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Rose Stuckey Kirk 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Joseph G. Doody 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Gary Sova 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Emily Nagle Green 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Douglas R. Casella 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Michael L. Battles 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, William P. Hulligan 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Michael K. Burke 2026-06-04. Form 4, filed 2026-06-05. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Emily Nagle Green 2026-06-08. Form 4, filed 2026-06-10. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Damian Andrew Ribar 2026-08-11. Form 4, filed 2026-08-12. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Douglas R. Casella 2026-08-13. Form 4, filed 2026-08-14. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Douglas R. Casella 2026-08-13. Form 4, filed 2026-08-14. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Douglas R. Casella 2026-08-14. Form 4, filed 2026-08-14. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Michael K. Burke 2026-08-26. Form 4, filed 2026-08-26. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 02, Michael K. Burke 2026-09-03. Form 4, filed 2026-09-03. Insider equity transaction reported since the proxy statement. View filing ↗
  • Section 06, 2026 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2026-06-08. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 97.3% (votes for as printed: 66,322,467). View filing ↗
  • Section 06, 2025 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2025-06-06. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 95.99% (votes for as printed: 65,592,922). View filing ↗
  • Section 06, 2024 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2024-06-10. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 97.7% (votes for as printed: 61,734,082). View filing ↗
  • Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed). Computed. Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.
  • Section 03b vehicle mix (computed). Computed. RSU / PSU / Options grant-date fair values summed per officer from the grants table; % performance-vested = PSU ÷ (RSU+PSU+Options).
  • Section 09b board cost (computed). Computed. Cash 687,500 + equity 1,029,501 + all other 0 = 1,717,001, summed across the director compensation table rows.
  • Waste Management, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-03-31. CEO total compensation as printed in Waste Management, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 19,048,786. View filing ↗
  • Republic Services, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-03-24. CEO total compensation as printed in Republic Services, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 14,857,016. View filing ↗
  • Waste Connections Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-02. CEO total compensation as printed in Waste Connections Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 9,757,565. View filing ↗
  • Casella Waste Systems Inc (subject), Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-17. CEO total compensation as printed in Casella Waste Systems Inc's own proxy. As printed: 2,830,523. View filing ↗
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