2018 Guide to Effective Proxies

2.17.6 CEO to median employee pay ratio | 397 6 TH EDITION | GUIDE TO EFFECTIVE PROXIES CEO Pay Ratio As required by Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K, we are providing the following information about the relationship of the median of the annual total compensation of our employees (excluding the Chief Executive Officer) and the annual total compensation of Jeffrey S. Sloan, our Chief Executive Officer. The pay ratio included in this information is a reasonable estimate calculated in a manner consistent with Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K. Given the different methodologies that various public companies will use to determine an estimate of their pay ratio, the estimated ratio reported below should not be used as a basis for comparison between companies. For 2017, our last completed fiscal year: • The annual total compensation of the median employee was $57,725; and • The annual total compensation of our Chief Executive Officer, as reported in the Summary Compensation Table presented earlier in this Proxy, was $9,135,783 (which amount is exclusive of $19,194 in employer- provided health and welfare benefits). Based on this information, for 2017 year, the ratio of the annual total compensation of the median employee to the annual total compensation of Mr. Sloan, our Chief Executive Officer, was 1 to 159. To determine the annual total compensation of the “median employee,” the methodology and the material assumptions, adjustments and estimates that we used were as follows: • We selected December 31, 2017 as the date upon which we would identify the “median employee.” • We determined that, as of December 31, 2017, we had approximately 10,111 employees working at the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries. • As is permitted under SEC rules, we eliminated 364 global employees (approximately 4.05% of our total population) from the data set. A list of the excluded employees and their country of residency is provided in the table below. In addition, as permitted under SEC rules, approximately 1,133 employees acquired in connection with the acquisition of ACTIVE Network in 2017 were not included in this calculation. Country # of Employees Country # of Employees Country # of Employees China 36 Malaysia 42 Singapore 19 Hungary 7 Malta 13 Slovakia 18 India 114 New Zealand 11 Sri Lanka 36 Macao 6 Romania 12 Taiwan 50 • To determine our “median employee” from our adjusted employee population, we used a consistently applied compensation definition and chose “base pay (actual).” We used a stratified statistical sampling methodology to provide a reasonable estimate of the median base pay for the employee population considered. We conducted an analysis using a sample of 8,614 employees. Then we identified employees who we expected were paid within approximately a +/- 10% range of that value, based on our assumptions that the median employee was likely to be within that group and that those within that group had substantially similarly probabilities of being the median employee. We then analyzed taxable wages for this group (annualizing pay for permanent employees who commenced work during 2017) to select a single median employee. • Using this methodology, we determined that the “median employee” was a full-time, hourly employee located in the United States, with base pay (actual) for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2017 in the amount of $43,975. • With respect to the annual total compensation of the “median employee,” we identified and calculated the elements of such employee’s compensation for 2017 in accordance with the requirements of Item 402(c)(2)(x) of Regulation S-K, resulting in annual total compensation of $57,725 (inclusive of the value of employer-provided health and welfare benefits). 58 – GLOBAL PAYMENTS INC. | 2018 Proxy Statement GLOBAL PAYMENTS INC.