Last year in May more than 53% of shareholders backed a nonbinding proposal at Timken ( TKR ) to have the $5.5 billion mechanical component-maker hire an investment bank to advise on a spinoff of its steel business into a separately traded public company. Other so-called "economic referendum proposals" seeking to have boards hire bankers to help them consider strategic alternatives have come up for a vote at a handful of companies in recent years. In 2013 there were five of these nonbinding proposals, up from four in 2012.