Christchurch International Airport Ltd boss Malcolm Johns received performance-related bonuses of $100,000 and $80,000 in spite of the global pandemic cutting a swathe through activity at the tourism gateway.
The $100,000 incentive relating to “long-term strategy that builds shareholder value”, including Tarras International Airport in Central Otago, was paid in full.
But $20,000 from his other $100,000 incentive was withheld, according to the CIAL annual report: “Due to the impact of short-term commercial outcomes in the last four months of the year from Covid-19”.
Those bonuses elevated his salary package to $898,640.
Christchurch City Holdings Ltd chief executive Paul Munro - head of the council’s commercial and investment arm - did not comment on the provision of bonuses for CEOs of companies in its portfolio.
Mayor Lianne Dalziel, who is on the CCHL board, would also not be drawn on whether bonuses or incentive payments were justified when questioned by The Star.
“I’ve been pushing for a long time for the council to take a stronger position with CCHL around the whole issue of senior executive remuneration,” he said.
“It’s not right that people would be taking bonuses and having significant pay increases at the top when we’ve got people that have had their hours reduced, pay reductions or lost their jobs. I just think it’s an incredibly bad look.”
In May last year, as the global pandemic was intensifying Johns opted not to cut his salary of $896,100 for the year ended June, 2019, irking the New Zealand Taxpayers Union.
Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke leveled more criticism at the CIAL board yesterday.
“Most bosses in the public sector took pay cuts last year in response to the impacts of Covid-19. It is astounding that bosses of ratepayer-owned companies weren’t willing to make the same sacrifices,” Houlbrooke said.
“Malcolm Johns was paid 90 percent of his maximum bonus. That’s not a sacrifice, that’s a windfall. Why is the council allowing the airport’s boss – one of the highest paid individuals in the country – to be cushioned from these impacts? Ratepayers will rightfully be appalled.”
Johns and Downie would not comment, while Gray was unavailable.
A CIAL spokesperson did confirm the company paid a $20 million dividend (the CCC has a 75 per cent shareholding); EcoCentral paid a $500,000 dividend to the council in October. The Lyttelton Port Company paid a $6.7 million dividend.
Christchurch City Holdings Ltd also has fibre broadband network provider Enable, Orion New Zealand Ltd, Citycare Group and EcoCentral Ltd under its umbrella.
Red Bus Ltd was also part of CCHL until it was sold last year while Development Christchurch Ltd has been wound up. Annual reports for those companies are not yet available and it is not known if their CEOs received bonuses.
Former Orion New Zealand chief executive Rob Jamieson, who earned $708,000 during the 2019-2020 financial year did not have a bonus or incentive payment built into his salary. Nor will interim chief executive Jono Brent for the current financial year.
Orion paid a dividend of $41.6m.
Enable boss Steve Fuller had previously been paid $490,000 in incentives during his tenure, with a spokesman confirming the CEO and executive “elected not to accept related to performance incentives in the 2019-2020 financial year”.
Enable plans to return a dividend for the first time in this financial year.
Former Citycare chief executive Onno Mulder did not receive a bonus payment as part of his $675,000 salary. He resigned in October and was succeeded by Peter Lord (property) and Tim Gibson (water).
Salary details for the duo were not available but Citycare did provide a $250,000 dividend.
