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Executive pay has risen by double digits in the last year, according to a survey by the Governance Institute of Australia (GIA).
The CEOs of ASX-listed companies saw their base pay rise by an average of 14 per cent, while managing directors got an 11 per cent bump in their pay cheques, according to the figures crunched by McGuirk Management Consultants on behalf of GIA.
The average fixed remuneration of a CEO at an ASX 200 company rose to $1.37 million, while for managing directors it's $1.88 million a year.
By comparison, general staff at just over 1,000 organisations surveyed in the public, private and non-profit sectors saw their pay lift by an average of 5 per cent over the same time.
Outside of the ASX200, CEOs in the information, media and technology sectors had the highest average fixed salaries, at nearly $1.05 million, followed by super funds ($607,000).
At the lower end, CEOs in the education and training, retail trade and administration and support sectors all had base pay of under $300,000.
The numbers are higher among managing directors, those with the highest average pay were leaders at junior mining, rental, hiring and real estate and electricity, gas, water and waste companies.
Among the cohort surveyed, half of the CEOs and managing directors from listed companies were eligible for bonuses.
"Those increases are very much the result of the demand for talent," said GIA CEO Megan Motto.
"We are in a global pool for talent in Australia, and it's important those companies get the best leadership."
The double-digit growth in executive pay is in line with increases in recent years, as well as the performance of the ASX.
"At first glance, these numbers in their raw form don't really pass the pub test," Ms Motto said.
"They are eye-watering sums for average Australians."
Shareholders have also baulked at executive remuneration in recent years at ASX-listed companies that have suffered reputational damage from some of their actions, including at Qantas last year as it faced legal action from the ACCC, a case which has since been settled by the airline.
The Australian Shareholders Association recommended voting against Westpac's remuneration report in 2021 when the company faced legal proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
It also recommended voting against the remuneration reports of Rio Tinto and AGL Energy that year.
Against the backdrop of an ongoing cost of living crisis and while many Australians on minimum wage wait for a pay rise next month, Ms Motto said companies needed to be transparent about how their remuneration packages were calculated.
"We have to look at these results in context, these companies are the largest organisations in the country, they average around $50 billion of market capitalisation each," Ms Motto said.
"There was a lot of shareholder activism around remuneration reports, and I expect that will continue in 2024," Ms Motto said.