AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot was the highest paid CEO
The median pay given to FTSE 100 CEOs dropped to the lowest point since the 2008 financial crisis last year.
However, its remains 86 times greater than the median income of a full-time worker in Britain.
The leaders of firms on the FTSE 100 received a median £2.69m in 2020, down by 17% from £3.25m the year before.
This, as reported by The Times, is according two a yearly report by the High Pay Centre think tank.
The drop-off is a result of lower bonuses, chief executives taking voluntary pay cuts and pressure being piled on by investors on the back of the pandemic.
AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot was the highest paid CEO in 2020, receiving £15.45m, followed by Brian Cassin of Experian who received £10.30m.
Only 64% of FTSE 100 firms paid their bosses bonuses in 2020, compared to 89% a year prior.
Many shareholders revolted against the prospect of CEOs profiting during the Covid-19 crisis.
“With the pandemic resulting in large numbers of workers being furloughed on reduced pay, weaker returns to shareholders and major public expenditure required in support of companies, it is appropriate that executive pay levels have also decreased,” the High Pay Centre said.
“It is questionable whether a 17% reduction in median pay to ‘only’ £2.69m represents a sufficient economy given the immense hardship experienced by many, the accumulated personal wealth of CEOs who will typically have experienced long careers in high-earning roles, and the fact that all companies, having benefited either directly or indirectly from policy measures to support businesses,would have been in a much worse position without government intervention.”