Chief executives of NHS trusts received an average pay increase of 6.9%, earning close to £600,000 last year.
According to a report on NHS boardroom pay published by Income Data Services (IDS) the median salary for a chief executive of a NHS foundation trust stood at £157,500 for the year to March 2009, compared to £147,500 for a chief executive of a non-foundation NHS trust.
In addition, the report also showed that executive salaries within foundation trusts increased by an average of 7.8% last year, compared to 6.1% for executives within non-foundation trusts.
Steve Tatton, editor of the IDS NHS Boardroom Pay Report 2010, said: “Our annual survey of NHS boardroom remuneration will not make comfortable reading for those wishing to see those at the top of the service leading from the front on wage restraint.”
“These are undoubtedly testing times for those making decisions about how much to pay NHS chiefs, balancing recruitment and motivation against the need to keep tight control of the public purse, but it seems that the equation has fallen on the side of high salary awards with pay continuing to run ahead of the rest of the workforce.”
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