Page 1351 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 9 April 2013
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think it will certainly take me until the end of this week to work through all of the information contained in that. The report into benchmarking, or the analysis of the remuneration arrangements, lists a range of different positions. It looks at positions within other utilities and it also looks at positions within the Canberra marketplace.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Mr Seselja.
MR SESELJA: How does the managing director’s salary compare with the CEOs of other state or territory-owned corporations or with other water companies in Australia?
MS GALLAGHER: I can only advise you on what I have seen from a couple of years ago, the work that I had asked Treasury to do. At that point in time the salaries across utilities were sitting anywhere from $400,000 to approximately $650,000, but that is probably a couple of years now. I have also seen the work that the Canberra Times has done recently, which would place the managing director of ACTEW certainly being paid more than other utility heads. But I have not seen every utility head’s recent salary. I imagine there would be a range of different conditions and different performance arrangements that would be attached to those that perhaps are not as clear to everybody.
This is an issue that we are trying to get to the bottom of. We had sought information around the managing director’s salary. That had indicated that his salary was in the $620,000 vicinity. We had that in writing from the chair of the board. When we looked at that and compared it to the advice that I had got from Treasury around suitable remuneration packages for like positions, it sat at the high end, but it was certainly within the bracket of that information we have received. As of 8 March, we now understand that salary to be considerably higher and we have convened a special general meeting of the ACTEW board to discuss this matter further.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Mr Wall.
MR WALL: Chief Minister, what is the comparative size of the other organisations used in the benchmark relative to ACTEW?
MS GALLAGHER: They all vary. This is the answer to that. It benchmarks a range of positions. They all vary in terms of scope of responsibility, asset and size of workforces. I think the issue which we are currently working through is the fact that the managing director of ACTEW has had additional responsibilities, and I think we would all, in this place, agree that someone should be paid what is fair and reasonable for the work that they have been asked to do. We are currently examining documentation around that and, indeed, have convened a meeting of the board to discuss this further.
MADAM SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Mr Wall.
MR WALL: Chief Minister, has the managing director offered to take a reduction in his salary? If so, would you recommend accepting it?
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