Data check: Why C-suite salaries jumped in FY24—and did staff pay keep pace?

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Astronomical corner-office pay packages have sparked debate worldwide, including in India. A Mint analysis of India's largest listed companies reveals that median remuneration for top executives grew by 8.6% in FY24, marking a slowdown compared to FY23.

. In several cases, the hikes aligned with the companies’ performance, but the salary gap with staff was stark in many companies, highlighting a larger issue. The analysis covered 744 executive directors, including 700 senior leaders such as managing directors and chairpersons, across 491 of the Nifty 500 companies.

India’s highest-paid CEOs hail from sectors like IT, banking and financial services, and auto, with three of the top earners also being company promoters. Read this | From Wipro to LTIMindtree, IT employees irked by another delay in salary hikes Over the last five years, the median pay for executive directors at Nifty 500 companies has surged: from ₹3.8 crore in FY19 to ₹5.7 crore in FY24. While the pandemic temporarily slowed pay growth, the rate is now rebounding towards pre-covid levels.

The analysis revealed a trend where director pay hikes were somewhat aligned with company performance. A positive correlation was observed between increased profits of Nifty 500 companies and director remuneration, with pandemic-induced disruptions as an exception. More here | At Flipkart, merit-based payouts push out salary hikes in increment season But, here’s the catch.