Increases in executive reward packages were almost double the salary increases received by workers on the shopfloor last year. The Directors' Pay Report 2005 published by Incomes Data Services showed that the median increase for the salaries of FTSE 350 directors stood at 6.7%, while salary increases on the shopfloor averaged between 3% and 3.5%.
As a proportion of their total remuneration, average incentives for FTSE 100 top executives stood at 51.7%, compared with 41% the previous year. The number of top executives receiving long-term share incentive plan awards also increased - 45% of FTSE 100 executives were allocated the perk, up from 12.9% the previous year.
Similarly, the percentage of this group who exercised share options rose from 11.8% to 27%. This may be due to improved business conditions and wider restructuring of incentive schemes over the past few years.
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