Directors and company chairmen in New Zealand who received a pay rise during 2011 got between 11% to 12% in median fee increases.
About 48% of respondents reported an upward shift in fees, compared with 40% the previous year, while just over 50% of them reporting increased workloads. One of the major drivers was serving on more committees, according to results from the seventh annual Moyle Remuneration Consulting Survey.
Data from 2005 shows listed company directors were paid 1.4 times the median fees paid to their counterparts in public-sector organisations, a comparison which had since risen to 1.96 times during 2011, effectively double the rate.
Privately owned businesses paid median fees 1.3 times more than the public sector.
Between 2004 and 2009, median fee increases consistently ran between 15% and 20%, Moyle director Jarrod Moyle said in a statement yesterday.
"We note that these percentage increases are calculated on what are relatively small base dollar figures, certainly compared to base salaries of corporate executives," Mr Moyle said.
While it appeared director fee increases were back on the agenda for more boards, in an uncertain economic environment with a high degree of public sensitivity, most organisations were conservative and chose to adopt modest increases in board fees, he said.
The survey confirmed that unlike pay for executives, director remuneration was not reviewed annually, but more likely every two or three years, or sometimes longer, as organisations chose to "sit tight during difficult economic circumstances".
The result of waiting so long between increases meant boards were often required to make "large catch-up increases" of 15% to 30% to stay in line with the market.
"Such increases can gain significant attention, even if they are warranted, and the total dollar value is not significant," Mr Moyle said.
Director remuneration generally consisted of base annual fees, but Moyle's senior consultant Sherry Maier noted the increasing reliance on separate committee fees, with 42% of organisations reporting paying these, and more board work being conducted in committees.
Directors' fees in 2011
• NZ directors earned a median $34,429 annually; $44,000 if based in Auckland.
• Chairmen earned a median $63,355.
• Construction and Property sectors got highest median fee; education setors lowest.
• Fees earned were 25%-33% of those paid to Australian directors in like-sized organisations.
• Strong Australian economic growth has driven the widest fee gap in the survey's seven-year history.
