CEOs from pharma company CSL, Woolworths, Coles, Qantas, CBA among highest paid

One CEO took home a whopping $14.5 million with many cashing in on big bonuses in the past financial year.

The CEO of pharmaceutical company CSL is one of the highest paid people running an Australian public company earning a whopping $14.4 million in the past financial year.

The pharma boss, Paul Perreault, saw a slight drop in his pay from the previous year, down from $14.75 million, after he scored more than $10 million in long term bonuses last year.

However, he was still given $4.3 million in short term bonuses in the 2022 financial year and will see his fixed salary jump by 3.5 per cent in the coming year.

CSL was contracted by the federal government to produce the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine in Australia at an undisclosed price.

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CSL CEO Paul Perreault received $4.3 million in short term bonuses. Picture: Aaron Francis/The Australian

Others with eye-watering salaries include BHP boss Mike Henry who received the equivalent of $11 million during the year, which rose from $10.7 million a year earlier.

The mining giant’s report revealed that Mr Henry’s pay ratio was 123 to one compared to median remuneration for all of the miner’s employees.

The chief executive also received a $12.7 million share windfall as part of a long term incentive.

The chiefs of Australia’s supermarket giant also added to their fortunes.

Woolworths boss Brad Banducci was paid $7.56 million last year, which had dropped from $8.37 million a year earlier.

He saw money knocked off his remuneration after his short term bonuses were impacted by the discovery that there was nearly $600 million in underpayments across Woolworths’ payroll going back years.

Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci. Picture: Supplied

Coles boss Steven Cain enjoyed a jump in his pay to $7.25 million up from $6.69 million a year earlier.

He received a $3 million long term bonus from a performance program, but his short term awards were docked due to costs blowing out in its warehouse automation project and a drop in customer satisfaction.

Coles CEO Steve Cain. Picture: David Geraghty / The Australian.

Meanwhile, Qantas boss Alan Joyce who is dealing with a massive fallout as the carrier struggles to return to its pre-pandemic performance with delayed flights and lost baggage, was paid $5.57 million for the past year up from in the 2021 financial year.

This included $2.15 million in cash and $3.27 million worth of long term share-based bonus payments.

Mr Joyce was the only incumbent ASX100 chief executive not to receive a bonus in either 2020 or 2021.

The bonus system reflects the huge payments CEOs are scoring just as companies are calling for wage restraint among their own workers.

Chief Executive Officer of Qantas Airways, Alan Joyce. Picture: Martin Ollman/Getty Images

Recently, Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn, warned of a “wage-price spiral” as a concern for the economy, yet he scored a $6.97 million pay packet for 2022, which soared from $5.17 million compared to last year.

But Domino’s Pizza after chief executive Don Meij saw his salary slashed by half to $1.56 million.

The fast food chief lost a range of bonuses including $1.38 million in short-term payments and an even bigger chunk of share-based payments set to come to fruition over the long term.

Companies on the ASX are generally paying a greater proportion of salary in the form of bonuses.

Domino’s chief saw his salary slashed in half. Picture: Getty Images

They are also are increasingly paid using shares to link CEO’s pay more strongly to the company performance.

The average bonus paid to ASX100 chief executives also hit a new high at $2.31 million, according to the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors.

Australia’s average full-time wage including overtime and penalty rates was around $94,000 annually in 2021, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.