Half of all directors get no pay rise

One in two company directors have seen their pay frozen or cut over the past 12 months, the Institute of Directors has announced, as it rejected claims by trades unions that the pain of the recession had not been shared equally by the workforce and urged public-sector wage restraint.

Research from the IoD has shown that 44 per cent of directors have seen their pay frozen, while a further 6 per cent have accepted an average pay cut of 15 per cent. For the 50 per cent of directors whose pay has risen, the average increase was 3.2 per cent.

The IoD said the breakdown of how directors' pay has been affected by the recession was broadly similar at small, medium and large companies, though the smallest businesses were more likely to have taken austerity measures.

The research also suggests that directors have had to work much longer hours. Some 46 per cent now work more than 55 hours a week, up from only 30 per cent a year ago.

"The recession is affecting people at all levels of seniority in the private sector," said Miles Templeman, the IoD's director general. "It's important the public sector now follows the example set by the private sector."

Mr Templeman said that public- sector managing directors earned an average of £110,000, more than their equivalent in any part of the private sector other than financial services.