Overview
- The High Pay Centre calculates that by midday on Tuesday, top UK chief executives will have earned more than the £39,039 a typical full‑time worker makes in a year.
- Median FTSE 100 CEO pay rose to about £4.4 million in the latest year, equating to roughly 113 times the average worker’s earnings.
- A handful of outlier packages underscore the gap, including £45.4 million for Melrose’s Peter Dilnot, £18.9 million for Pearson’s Andy Bird and Omar Abbosh, and £14.7 million for AstraZeneca’s Pascal Soriot.
- Shareholder rebellions over pay at FTSE 100 companies increased from eight to 15 in 2025, indicating growing investor pushback.
- The TUC’s Paul Nowak urges guarantees for worker representation on pay committees, while campaigners say the newly passed Employment Rights Act should be paired with stronger governance and tax measures.