Lex Greensill, Ken Diehm, others named on Gympie, Maryborough, Hervey Bay and Bundaberg rich list
Public servants and private CEOs are raking in the cash across the Gympie region, Fraser Coast and Bundaberg, earning big bucks – and in some cases, more than Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Now, some of those local rich listers can be named and ranked.
Gympie
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Big business means big money, and for some of the region’s public servants and private business owners it means a big salary too.
Not only were some of the region’s CEOs taking home pay higher than the $399,955 earned by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk this year, but Scott Morrison’s $549,250 gross remuneration too.
It was far above the average wage earned in regional Australia: 2016 Census data shows Gympie residents took home a median wage of $45,488 per year, while Fraser Coast residents earned a slightly higher median wage of $47,112 and Bundaberg residents $47,996.
These are some of the top earners across the Wide Bay from the public and private sectors. Private sector business owners and executives have been ranked according to revenue generated by their companies.
Public servants have been ranked according to their annual wage.
Private
8. Corbets
Alvin and Andrew Corbet are the face of Gympie’s more than 40-year-old Corbet business empire, of which Dun and Bradstreet said Corbet Equipment Hire generated about $10.9 million (AUD) in revenue, while Emberwell Pty Ltd brought in more than $5 million each year.
7. Zerners
AgSolutions CEO Julie Williams, production manager Jason Zerner and operations manager Andrew Williams are the management team behind this Gympie agricultural business which generates more than 11 million (AUD).
It was founded by Julie and Jason’s parents Trevor and Wendy Zerner in 1989, and sells products through more than 100 stores across every state except Western Australia.
6. Persals
The Persal name has become synonymous with power lines and the Fraser Coast thanks to a construction and utility empire started in 1975.
Founded by Warren Persal and now run by family members including Raelene and Janet two parts of the company alone, Persal and Co Transmission and persal and Company, generate more than $65.25 million (AUD) combined annually.
5. Madills
John Scott Madill, Garth Madill, Adam Madill and John Madill are the core of Gympie’s motoring empire, leading a family company started in 1935, which generates about $87.55 million revenue a year, and according to Dun and Bradstreet.
The company was bought by the Motorama group at the start of 2020.
4. McLean and Fleming
John McLean is the CEO of Bundaberg Brewed Drinks, which was bought by the Fleming family in 1968 when it was called Electra Drinks.
Mr McLean, the son-in-law of Cliff Fleming who was at the helm when the sale happened, has helped steward the business to a point where it generated $139.82 million (AUD) revenue in 2020.
3. Nolans
Nolan brothers Terry, Tony and Michael are the family engine driving longtime Gympie business Nolan Meats, which Dun and Bradstreet report generates $256.8 million (AUD) in revenue annually.
The 63-year-old business has become a powerhouse in the meat industry, selling not only in Australia but having a strong export presence too.
2. Hynes
James Hyne and Peter Hyne serve are at the forefront of the Hyne and Son empire which generates about $32o million (AUD) in sales in 2020, according to commercial data site Dun and Bradstreet.
James, stakeholder engagement manager, and Peter, the general manager in charge of sales marketing and customer service, are fifth generation members of the Hyne family, which founded the business in 1929 and has multiple factories in Maryborough.
1. Greensills
Bundaberg farmer Lex Greensill cultivated a $6 billion financial empire at the helm of Greensill Capital, which was founded in 2011 and ran into serious financial trouble earlier this year.
The Greensill’s value, including Mr Greensill and his brothers Peter and Andrew, was worth a combined $2.13 billion and Greensill Capital alone generated more than $653 million (AUD) in revenue in 2019.
The company collapsed into liquidation early in 2021.
Public
11. Magistrate Chris Callaghan
A member of the Magistrates Court of Queensland since 2007, and Gympie’s magistrate since 2018, Chris Callaghan’s remuneration sits at $368,331 as set under the Judicial Remuneration Act 2007.
10. Magistrate Andrew Moloney
Bundaberg magistrate Andrew Moloney’s $368,331 annual remuneration is in line with other state magistrates, of which he has been a member since 2017.
9. Magistrate Stephen Guttridge
Hervey Bay magistrate Stephen Guttridge has a pay packet of $368,331 per annum as set under the Judicial Remuneration Act.
8. Magistrate Kurt Fowler
Maryborough magistrate Kurt Fowler has been a Queensland magistrate since 2019, and earns an annual remuneration of $368,331.
7. North Burnett Regional Council CEO Rachel Cooper
Rachel Cooper’s exact remuneration is not available in the council’s latest annual reports, but her salary falls within the $200,000 and $300,000 bandwidth.
6. Gympie Regional Council CEO Shane Gray
Shane Gray’s total annual pay packet is not detailed in the council’s available annual report, but his salary sits between $250,000 and $349,999 as the council is one category smaller in size than those at Bundaberg and the Fraser Coast.
5. Bundaberg Regional Council CEO Steve Johnston
Steve Johnston’s $428,699 annual salary, on a four-year contract, places him on a higher wage than the State Premier this year, and above her expected 2022 pay packet of $427,500.
4. Fraser Coast Regional Council CEO Ken Diehm
The Fraser Coast Council’s latest annual report lists Ken Diehm’s total remuneration package as $442,012.
The deal includes a gross salary of $388,284, a capped superannuation payment of $25,000, another $25,000 as the deemed nominal value of a motor vehicle, and $3728 for professional development.
3. Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service CEO Debbie Carroll
Debbie Carroll took home $288,000, according to the health service’s 2019-20 annual report after stepping in following the controversial sacking of Adrian Pennington in 2019.
Mr Pennington’s annual salary at the time of his departure was $453,000, so across a full year Ms Carroll’s is expected to be about the same.
Ms Carroll started as a general nurse at Mackay Base Hospital in 1981 before graduating from Central Queensland University and moving into senior health positions in north and central Queensland health services.
She first joined the WBHHS in 2006.
2. Sunshine Coast Health and Hospital Service CEO Dr Peter Gillies
The 25-year medical veteran took over the SCHHS’s top job on September 1, 2021, along with its $458,000 pay packet.
Dr Gillies served as the Chief Executive at the Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service before coming across to the Sunshine Coast service, which includes Gympie.
He worked as a doctor for more than 25 years and has worked in South Africa and the United Kingdom.
1. SunWater CEO Glenn Stockton
The leader of northern Queensland’s water service brought home a salary of $594,000 in 2020-21.
The organisation covers not only Bundaberg and the Fraser Coast, but as far north as Townsville, making it one of the largest quangos in the state.
A member of the Order of Australia, Mr Stockton’s previous stints include Director and Board Chairman of the Pulse Partnerships Consortium delivering the Cross River Rail, Director and Chief Executive Officer of the ACT Light Rail project, and time served as a Colonel in the Royal Australian Engineers.
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