ABC goes begging as it pays executives 70pc more

As the ABC cuts news resources, its executives pocketed 70 per cent extra last year.

Ita Buttrose, chair of ABC and David Anderson, managing director of ABC. Picture: ABC

ABC’s board and executives were paid almost 70 per cent more over the past year, at the same time as the public broadcaster was forced to cut resources to journalism and programming.

As the ABC demand­s more money from the government, its annual report, released on Wednesday, revealed it paid its executives and board directors a total of $6.1m in the year to June 30, up from the $3.6m it paid the executive management team and board in the previous 12 months.

There were 17 people in the management and board band in 2018-19, compared with 15 people in the previous financial year.

Details of the cost blowout come as the broadcaster’s top brass reviews its extensive television, radio and online operations after the federal govern­ment froze its annual funding for three years. It will cost the organisation $84m — $15m in the current financial year and $28m and $41m in the next two years.

The ABC is under growing pressure to improve its coverage beyond Australia’s major cities, with chairwoman Ita Buttrose calling last week for the broadcaster to better represent the nation­’s diverse population.

Former ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie was paid $1.56m.

ABC director of news Gaven Morris was paid $600,146.

Former managing director Michelle Guthrie, who was axed in September last year over her performance, was paid $1.56m, with the bulk of that accounting for termination benefits of $1.35m. She also received short-term employe­e benefits totalling $211,983 and superannuation of $4920 for the financial year ended June 30. Her remuneration in the 2018 financial year was $963,991.

The $1.35m termination payment is less than the $1.64m payment the ABC announced in March. It consisted of a $730,000 legal settlement and $911,117 gross payment to Ms Guthrie. The differenc­e is understood to have been spent on costs associated with her termination.

Managing director David Ander­son, who took over Ms Guthr­ie’s responsibilities, received $1.14m in the 2019 financial year, more than double the $508,891 he received in the previous­ year. After more than seven months as acting managing director, he was formally appointed to the role on May 3.

The annual report also revealed that the vast majority of its near 3280 workforce is based in NSW. The ABC had 1696 staff in NSW, followed by 495 in Victoria and 333 in Queensland. It had 17 staff abroad.

The remuneration for director of news, analysis and investigations Gaven Morris jumped nearly 20 per cent to $600,146.

Michael Mason, who retired as director of the ABC regional and local in early December, had his remuneration surge nearly 82 per cent to $900,922. That was largely due to his termination benefits, which totalled $642,854 after 34 years with the broadcaster.

Ms Buttrose was paid $62,158 for just over four months as chairwoman. Ms Guthrie’s axing led to the resignation of chairman Justin Milne, who Ms Buttrose replac­ed at the end of February.

The ABC booked a net operating surplus of $38.3m, inflated by a $35.5m windfall from the revaluation of its Sydney headquarters in Ultimo and which it expects to be an insurance recovery for the removal of flammable cladding from those headquarters this year.

It received $1.05bn in federal government funding last financial year, and $62.5m from other sources, including ABC Commercial.

Stripping out the property and insurance gains, the ABC booked a surplus of $2.7m. Its total expen­ses fell 3.3 per cent to $1.15bn.