Top managers in England's NHS trusts received average pay rises of nearly 7% in 2008-09, compared with less than 3% granted to nurses.
An Incomes Data Services report into boardroom pay at more than 380 trusts found chief executives earned seven times more than the average nurse. Senior managers in NHS trusts typically earned £147,500, the report said.
Unions have questioned why bosses have had above-inflation rises when ordinary workers have had much lower rises. Senior managers responded by saying that NHS trusts are immensely complicated organisations to run, with budgets of many millions of pounds.
The report into boardroom pay at more than 380 NHS trusts in England found chief executives received a 6.9% average pay increase in 2008/09 - more than double that given to nurses. Chief executives at NHS foundation trusts received £10,000 more a year on average than those managing less "gold standard" trusts.
Monday's report showed the 6.9% pay increase for chief executives in 2008/09 came on top of a 6.4% rise in 2007/08. The highest-paid chief executive was at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust in London, with £270,000.
At Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, the chief executive received £237,500 while at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the chief executive was paid £217,500.
Report author Steve Tatton 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."
A union official with Unison, Mike Jackson, said managers did need to be paid a decent salary, but "it is not right for senior staff to get above inflation pay hikes, while the rest of the workforce get a below inflation pay deal."
Comments
Quote: A union official with
The comment about managers deserving a decent salary aside, I think this comment from a Unison official is a little rich, considering it was Unison who helped draw up the shitty three-year deal in the first place..
true. Although it is quite
true.
Although it is quite funny that the three-year deal actually ended up being quite a lot better than example our local government one-year deals because of the financial crisis and drop in inflation...